Full Moon Rising
by A'jes' Blue
Summary: Part five- aftermath and the end of Full Moon Rising
1. Part One- Leaving Home

## Full Moon Rising, Part One

The forest was eerily quiet. An owl hooted and the full moon burst from behind a cloud bathing the woods with silvery light. Almost silently a large shadow crept through the underbrush to the edge of a clearing. It raised its head and sniffed the air, sifting the scents on the gentle breeze. It stepped into the light of the clearing and revealed itself as a large female gray wolf. Skirting the edge of the clearing she caught a scent and took off at a silent run. Miles away a wolf howled. Pausing, she took up the howl, as did many others hidden in the woods around her. From hill to hollow in the valley around her the call went out, and the pack sang with full throat. With the calls of her packmates ringing in her ears she ran on. Running like the wind was her greatest joy in wolf shape. As the hours passed and the moon started to set, the wolf paused in the headlong pursuit of her silvery light and slunk contentedly toward home. Long after the first fingers of dawn touched the horizon, the sun discovered her lying on her side in the tall grass outside her home. Stretching, tousled, mud splattered, and naked she rose to her feet and swayed a bit. Yawning, she slowly walked into the house, and grabbing up the towel she had left for this express purpose, she toweled off the worst of the grit before walking barefoot up the stairs to her shower. 

It took her two shampoos to get the brambles and mud out of her hair, and afterward it was so tangled, brushing it was no picnic. Sitting wrapped in a towel, she grimaced as she tried to pull her brush through her thick hair. Growling softly to herself, she yanked hard. A clump of hair came loose and dangled uselessly from her brush. Discarding the clump, and absently massaging the spot on her skull she stood and discarded the towel. Moving to foot of the unslept in bed, she gathered up her formal pale lavender robes, and dressed. 

Padding silently back downstairs to the spacious kitchen, she ate mechanically while glancing over the papers she had been working on before the moon rose. Finishing her meal, she gathered up all the papers and packed them away in a brown leather case with the initials IC embossed on the front. 

After closing the case with a snap, she reached into the cabinet for a flask that sat in the deepest recess. Uncorking it, the peaty odor assaulted her senses. Humming under her breath, she poured a small amount into a glass and swished it about for a moment, then added three amber drops from a different container. She watched as the liquid thickened and started to bubble. When it was smoking slightly, she closed her eyes, took a deep breath, drank the mixture and gagged. Even after all the years she had been brewing and drinking the potion she was never fully prepared for the vile bitterness of the taste, or the thick mucous like feeling of its texture on her tongue. Opening her eyes and shuddering slightly, she pushed the flask back into to the darkest corner, capped and returned the other container. 

Once she had recovered from the aftertaste of the potion, she washed out the dishes and set them on the drying rack. As she exited the kitchen, she picked up the case and plucked a thin wand out of a mug full of quill pens, swizzle sticks, and chopsticks. 

Still barefoot, she tucked her wand into the pocket at her hip and exited the house. Standing tall at the gate of the farm, she took the wand and tapped gently at a spot a few inches from her face. A purple shimmer glowed softly and she smiled slightly. Carefully she touched the glimmer with her fingertips and explored the spell. The wolf pack had not tried to break the bindings. She knew it before she touched the shield, but it was her duty to make sure. Her blue-black eyes narrowed slightly as she realized someone had probed the guard shield spells at some point since the last time she checked them- four days ago- from the outside. A wizard or witch had noticed it, and probed it. Suddenly concerned she explored it further- but the spell could tell her nothing of the probe, other than that it had happened. The enchantment was very specific- it was to tell her if the pack tried to break it. That it held the residual echo of the probe was unexpected. 

Shaking her head sternly, she hummed at the gate and it opened. Stepping outside the gate and closing it behind her, she scooped up the Daily Prophet- American from where the delivery owl dropped it, and walked up the sun-dappled street to the portkey. Pausing beside a small street sign that proclaimed "Speed Limit 45" she looked about to make sure she was alone, and then she touched the enchanted sign and disappeared. 

Four hundred miles away, she reappeared next to a shed on the edge of the grounds to the Academy for the Magical Arts and Sciences. A small black haired witch greeted her with a smile when she stepped away from the portkey. 

"Sama! How was the running?" 

"Fine, thank you Portia." Sama paused. Ordinarily she wouldn't have worried about the brief probing she had found against her shield spell, but there were disturbing rumors circulating about the return of dark magic in Europe. Brushing her mane of prematurely graying hair from her face she sighed. "Portia…" 

"Yes?" the little witch looked up at her frowning slightly. Sama was by no means a tall woman. Rather average, actually, but Portia always made her feel oafish and clumsy. The song mistress was small, graceful, and looked deceptively fragile. 

"There wasn't anyone looking for me in the last few days, was there? I found evidence of tampering out at the farm." 

"No, not that I am aware of. I will keep my ears open for you, though." 

"Thank you, Portia. I should get to class." Striding away from the portkey shed, she entered the grounds of the school. 

The school looked forbidding from her vantage point. It was large, brick, and with long, low buildings that looked like army barracks off to one side. A large, hideous wooden door squatted in the center of the building façade and the windows had bars on them. From here it looked forlorn and depressing. It was a brilliant charm to ward off prying Muggles. As she drew closer and closer the building changed shape to look more like a castle with turrets and towers, ivy covered and friendly with it's open door and brilliantly colored flags. The long, low buildings became the stables, greenhouses, and practical labs for the more dangerous and unpredictable magics. Muggles never got past the gatehouse at the front of the building unless accompanied by a wizard or witch. And then, they only saw what they expected to see. 

Sama reached the wide staircase and climbed slowly to the door and entered. 

"Sama! There you are. Weren't sure what with the moon and all as you'd make it in today." A large wizard with hat askew and robes fluttering sloppily, flapped his hands about her head in greeting. 

"Sir." Sama looked up at him calmly. The principal fell into step beside her. As they walked they absently greeted the students on their way to classes. 

"The Minister of Magic has a request- for you specifically! She is sending someone from England- from Albus Dumbledore himself!" The man was agitated and speaking gibberish. 

"Principal Marshal, what are you talking about?" Sama stopped in the hallway trying to follow his train of thought. Never the most lucid person, Marshal seemed a bit more frantic than usual. 

"Here! I must! You should… Ahhhh... " he exclaimed and shoved a parchment into her hand, turned, and flapping his hands in agitation, hurried down the hall. 

Staring after him in surprise, Sama glanced at the parchment in her hand. It was from the Ministry of Magic of the Americas, and it contained the text from a message from the British Ministry, as well as a personal note from the American Minister herself. Reading silently, Sama's eyes widened in surprise. 

"Cornelius Fudge, Minister of Magic of Britain blah blah blah, and Headmaster Albus Dumbledore of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry blah blah blah requests that the Minister of Magic of the Americas assist in the matter of finding and procuring the services of an expert in the earth's wild magics" and it was signed by both minister and headmaster. The note from their Minister suggested Isamatia Canid as the most likely expert who could assist the British wizards. A separate note informed her that an emissary from Dumbledore would arrive in four days to speak with her. 

Sama winced at the use of her full name. Her mother had thought it pretty, Sama thought it appalling. She had changed it as soon as she attended school. 

Sighing, she climbed the rest of the way to her classroom. Four days and she would find out why an obscure branch of magical studies had caught the eye of the likes of Albus Dumbledore. 

~*~ 

Four days later she looked up from grading a surprise quiz on taming wild plant magic to find one of her fourth year students leading a slight, tired looking man wearing a rumpled, but clean black robe into her classroom. 

"May I help you?" 

"Are you" he consulted the parchment "Isamatia Canid?" 

"Please, call me Sama. Thank you Rupert, you may go back to desk duty." The fourth year student disappeared down the hall and she stood and ushered the pale man into her private lounge. Gesturing to an uncommonly comfortable couch she sat in her office chair, legs crossed. "You have come from Britain?" 

He smiled slightly as he sank back into the sofa. "Yes. My name is Remus Lupin. We have need of someone with your- particular abilities." 

"Tea?" Sama held up her wand. 

"Please." Remus was grateful the sofa was so comfortable. He had been called to Hogwarts on a moment's notice, only one day after the full moon. After a hurried meeting with Professor Dumbledore, he'd been forced to travel as a muggle on an entirely uncomfortable airplane to the States, and using directions that looked like they'd been copied out by a troll, he'd arrived at the Academy of the Magical Arts and Sciences bleary eyed and exhausted. Idly looking at his host, he noticed the she was not wearing shoes, and her bare feet looked out of place with her otherwise formal pale lavender robes. 

Sama served the hot tea and studied her guest a moment. There were dark circles under his eyes, and it did not look as if he had slept much. "Why don't you tell me why you are here, Mr. Lupin." Sama prompted politely. 

That seemed to shake him out of his lethargy for a moment and he looked suddenly fierce. "Voldemort is back." 

Sama put down her cup carefully. "The Dark Arts wizard? He disappeared, didn't he, several years ago?" 

"He's back. He is gaining power again, and I don't think he will stop at England and Europe this time. Our sources indicate he has gathered supporters here." 

Sama considered. "The Americas don't have all the old magics and power places to draw on that Britain and Europe do. The powers here are different. Even the ley lines flow differently, as they haven't been in use for hundreds of years. They're more unpredictable, harder to follow. They can be considerably more powerful than regular magic. Wild earth magic is much more a part of… Ah." Sama looked at him as she discovered the reason for his traveling all the way to America to hear what she had to say. 

"You see now?" 

"You think he will try to use the wild magic in his play for power." 

"Yes. We need someone in the Order with your talents and knowledge." 

"Order?" Sama looked at him sharply. 

"The Order of the Phoenix. Professor Dumbledore- well really the Ministry- had disbanded it while Voldemort was inactive, but he's- Dumbledore I mean- started it up again, and there are… vacancies to fill." Remus winced a little with the last bit and Sama presumed the vacancies were Voldemort's victims. 

She smiled a little in sympathy. "What is it you think I can help you with?" she asked gently. 

Remus paused. "Professor Dumbledore wants you to join us. He wants you to come to Britain and share your knowledge of wild earth magic. He believes you will have insight into Voldemort's movements we won't be able to predict. If he is out there using wild magic..." 

"Leave? Leave the Academy? And my students- the school year has just begun, what of them? Leave America? Surely he can't be serious?" 

"I assure you he is very serious. He sent me here in the hopes you will say yes and come back with me." 

"Mr. Lupin, I can not drop everything to…" 

"Professor- Miss- Sama- People are dying. We need your help. Do you honestly think Voldemort won't turn his attention this way this time- especially if he's using the wild magics?" 

Sama was silent for long minutes. Finally, she rose from her chair and gathered up the tea things. A wave of her wand and the items disappeared. Agitated, she sat, and then jumped up again. Remus watched her pace about the room with interest. She looked troubled, and paced like a caged animal, arms folded across her body. Then, after staring out the window, it seemed she came to some sort of decision, for she picked up a scrying glass from her desk and spoke into it. 

"Portia, a moment?" 

Immediately, the song mistress Apparated into the office. She glanced inquiringly at Remus. 

"Portia, I will be going away for a time, and I need someone to take care of the farm- keep the wards up and current. I will also need someone to take my classes-" she waved her hand in an dismissive gesture. "I will speak with Marshal about this… Portia- I need someone to stand as Keeper." 

The song mistress paled. "I… Understand." She swallowed visibly. Glancing quickly in Remus's direction she went on. "Is there anything… special I should know about the farm spells?" 

"No. You know the ones I use, we've practiced them together enough times. Just be sure they remain active at the right times- Everyone who needs to can get in- but they're not always diligent with the closure bindings so you'll have to check them at least once a month." Portia left looking a bit stunned. After a short but agitated conversation with the school's principal through the scrying glass, Sama turned back to Remus. 

"We'll start for England in the morning. I assume Muggle transportation will be more prudent? Lower profile, and all that?" Remus nodded as Sama continued "For this evening, you are welcome to stay with me out at Wolfgate Farm." 

Remus started a bit at the name of the farm, but murmured "Thank you, and please call me Remus." She smiled as he picked up his suitcase and followed her out of office, down the hall and out to the portkey shed. 

Sama turned to find him looking back at the forbidding illusion of the school. "It is a marvelous charm," he said. 

"I agree. Many things are not what they seem to be." Turning her attention to the permanent portkey to Wolf Hollow, and Wolfgate Farm, she nodded to him. "Grab the pole- not the sign. The password 'Full Moon' will take you to the Farm." 

Remus looked at her with an appraising eye as she touched the portkey, one among many standing next to the shed, muttered the spell words and disappeared. 

Copying her actions, Remus found himself on the side of a road next to a forest. Sama was already walking toward a gate. She took out her wand and tapped gently on the gate and it swung open. 

"Welcome to Wolfgate Farm." she said as he joined her. He looked up at the cozy looking farmhouse sitting atop a small rise a half-mile away and he sighed. Closing the gate behind them, she tapped it again to lock it. 

Walking quickly, they covered the distance to the house in very little time. Once there, she showed him into a guest room made up in muted creams, reds, and oranges. Remus put his suitcase down and sank into the chair next to the large picture window. The sun was low on the horizon and he watched as the sky turn pink and purple and orange before fading into the deep blue of early evening. Before the sun had completely set, he was dozing. He woke with a start at the slam of a door. Startled, he sat up and stared out the window to see Sama enter a gated garden. Twenty minutes later she was back and he heard a low singing from the kitchen. Rubbing his face slowly, he stumbled out into the lighted room. 

A pot bubbled briskly over the fire in the hearth, and Sama was quickly mincing a variety of plants he could not identify. As she swept the minced plants into the pot he realized the song was part of a spell for the potion- whatever it was- she was brewing in the small pot. She tapped the pot with her wand and it started to self-stir. Turning from the pot she ended the murmured song and smiled at him. An earthy odor started to rise from it. 

"What are you making?" 

"It is an old family recipe. It is a… health tonic. I don't know how many of the ingredients I will be able to find in Britain. Some of them only grow around here- and some I cultivated on my own. And the preparation needs the song to bind it… I don't suppose that there are a lot of singing apothecaries in England?" Sama looked sideways at Remus with a small smile starting in the corners of her mouth. 

Remus started and glanced at her, unsure if she was poking fun- and noticed the smile. After a quick searching look he laughed, and admitted he did not know of any apothecary that sang. He grinned wider with a sudden mental image of Severus Snape bent over a cauldron singing as gently to it as Sama had just done. Sama's voice snapped him back to the present. 

"The first thing about wild magic," Sama began in her 'teacher's voice', "is the song. There is music in everything in nature- from the whine of the wind, to the music of rushing water, to the gentle sound of unfurling leaves. Knowing how to unleash the power with song is one of the three cornerstones to the use of wild magics. Tone, volume, intent, and key are all sometimes more important that what the words are." 

Remus stared at her. He knew some charms and spells used different sounds- and sometimes even different languages, but he never knew a spell that it didn't matter what the words were. "Why don't the words matter?" he asked sounding curious. 

"Before there was language there was sound. Language is a fairly new concept when discussing the ages of wild magic. It doesn't matter what you say- as much as how you say it. This is what makes wild nature magic the most obscure and difficult of the magics to get consistent results from. Duplicating a spell in wild magic needs the exact same conditions- exact- down to the phase of the moon and time of year. Weather patterns change spells- usually not much- but sometimes the results are unpredictable. Most wild magic practical experience is done within a protected space- with strong shields in case something unexpected happens." 

"Unexpected?" Remus glanced at the bubbling pot. 

"Don't worry. Herbal magic works the same everywhere. That is a simple herbal potion. The only wild magic is the song, it's for binding- it encourages a specific response in the one who drinks it. In this case it encourages strength. It is most effective brewed in early winter, but I don't know how long I will be gone from here, and that it is early autumn shouldn't make too much of a difference." 

"Oh. Is that another potion of some kind?" Remus pointed to the second pot, covered and sitting near the hearth. 

"No." she smiled. Sama tapped her wand on the counter and two bowls flew out of a cabinet behind her, the top of the pot whisked off and a ladle filled the bowls with steaming soup. "Dinner?" 

Remus realized he was famished and smiled as she took the bowls to the table in the corner, and tapped her wand again and a basket of rustic bread swooped over to the table and settled next to him. 

After dinner he watched as she carefully ladled the strong smelling potion from the pot into a number of small jars, and corked them. Packing them carefully, she reached into a cabinet and removed a jar with a dropper and some amber liquid in the bottom, and shook it gently. Holding it up to the light she checked the level of liquid and sighed slightly. She packed it away with the other jars. As she washed out the dinner dishes and the cauldron she'd brewed the potion in they chatted quietly. Remus felt himself relaxing in this kitchen. It was a sense of peace he hadn't felt in many years. 

"I spoke with the Key Mistress while you were resting. She has arranged everything. We will leave here tomorrow morning around ten. There is a portkey station in the village that will take us to New York. From there we have a 2pm flight to London. I trust there is transportation from there?" 

"Yes. A train to Hogsmeade leaves several times a day. From there we can get to Hogwarts." 

"Good. We have a long day tomorrow. I suggest we get some sleep." 

~*~ 

When the sun streamed in her window the next morning, Sama rose, dressed in the most comfortable Muggle clothing she had, and packed a set of simple reed pipes, a few robes, a pair of well worn sandals, and a couple of other small items- including the potion she had brewed the night before. Before placing them inside, she chanted an unbreakable spell over the bottles. Then she spelled the case to make it weigh less than it did. That done, she took the case downstairs and began setting out breakfast. Singing quietly, she did not notice when Remus entered yawning. 

"More wild magic?" he asked with a slight smile. 

Sama smiled back and replied "No. Just singing. It will be difficult to leave here." 

They ate breakfast in silence for a while, and then Remus spoke. 

"How long has this place- Wolfgate Farm- been your home?" Remus spoke the name carefully, as if unsure of it. 

"All my life. I was born in the bedroom upstairs. Besides the house and gardens there's land out there- farther than you can see. Once it was a working farm, but we've let it revert back to forests." 

"We?" 

"My parents before me, and my father's family. It is the sanctuary for the entire clan- I am just the Keeper at the moment. There are spells and enchantments that must be kept up and fine-tuned periodically. One of the spells hides this whole valley from Muggle developers." 

"That seems ambitious for a private home. Are there other witches and wizards in the area?" 

"Just family." Sama smiled. 

After breakfast, she led him out of the house and set the wards in place over the farm. Remus tapped the shield absently and felt the power she released into it, and noticed the shielding spells were unusually strong, and woven into it was the enchantment to hide the property. He looked at her oddly when she was done. 

"That's very strong." 

She answered the implied question. "The power grows with each generation that keeps the shields active, but yes, it does need the strength." 

"It's almost a cage." He remarked mildly. 

Sama did not reply. Leading the way, she walked steadily toward the village, and a quarter of an hour later they arrived at the portkey station. Remus had been looking about with interest at a small, bustling wizarding community that reminded him of Hogsmeade. He was shaken from his reverie by a voice. 

"Sama-love!" a portly little woman in a purple polka-dot dress carrying a bright green umbrella greeted her as she entered the town square. "You're going away for a bit! Who is this you'll be traveling with? Oh too bad! Not that other nice young man- what a shame- he was handsome- and charming- why you have a difficult life, don't you deary?" this last she had directed at Remus before turning back to her niece, "We'll miss you at the running- and council meetings, of course. Such trouble you head for. Don't forget the lake!" 

"Yes, Auntie, I've been invited to England. This is Remus Lupin- (Remus this is my Aunt Iris). The farm is there for the running. Portia will stand as Keeper." Rifling through her bag, Sama handed her aunt a group of letters. "Will you owl post these for me? I'd send them but we really must catch our portkey." 

"Yes, my dear. Have a lovely time! I dare say I'll see you again young man. And remember the lake!" Sama's aunt waved her green umbrella in the sunshine and toddled off. Remus noticed the odd little woman was barefoot. Sama breathed a sigh of relief. Due to her strong precognitive abilities Iris' conversational style was usually a mixture of past, present, and future all rolled into one. Trying to sort out what she said made Sama's head hurt, and her chatter usually only made sense after the fact. 

Gesturing over to a storefront where antiques were decorating the windows she ushered him into the store. 

"Ye Olde Antique Shoppe?" Remus read with disbelief. 

Sama winced and smiled sheepishly. "It's a good cover- for the Muggles who mistakenly wander into town. Muggles- American muggles anyway- spend an amazing amount of time 'antiqueing'- searching for and buying old furniture and things. For the muggles staying in the village (not that we get many muggles) don't find it strange to see a number odd people around an antique shop. Besides, it gives us interesting portkeys." 

Remus held the door as they entered the shop. Glancing around with interest, he noticed old furniture and clutter in every corner. 

"Sama and… guest?" 

Remus looked about and found a barefoot child no more than eight at his elbow. 

"Yes, Bobby." 

Bobby checked his clipboard. "You are the baby buggy- circa 1876- in twelve minutes to New York. Good running, Sama." 

"You too, little cousin." She leaned over and caressed the child's cheek as he grinned engagingly at her before disappearing behind a large ugly armoire. Remus gave her an odd look, and she opened her case and tossed a well-worn pair of sandals onto the floor. With a faintly disgusted look on her face she shoved her bare feet into them. Glancing around as she picked up her bundle she led him to the back of the cramped store and through a yellow curtain. An older child, a girl this time glanced up from the desk. 

"Any minute now, Sama." She said. 

"Thank you, Julia. You studying for school next year?" 

"Yes'm. I'll be eleven next full moon." 

"Congratulations! I'll be sorry to miss that. Good running, Julia." 

"Thanks!" the undisguised pleasure in her face was evident "You, too." 

Remus was puzzling over these odd exchanges when they touched the portkey and were whisked off to a New York antique shop with the buggy. Several hours later, while flying across the ocean, Remus posed his question. 

"What does it mean, exactly, 'good running'?" 

Sama looked up in surprise. "It's- ah- a family expression." She said carefully. "It means happy trails. Have a good trip. Bon voyage. Have a good time. It's a leave taking of sorts." 

Remus nodded and settled back in the wholly uncomfortable seat. Flying was disconcerting for him at any time, but flying in this muggle contraption made him even more nervous. Sama looked slightly tense, as well. 

"I'd rather be on a broom," he thought he heard her mutter. 

"I'm sorry?" 

Sama flushed. "I don't like to fly- in any form. I usually apparate, walk, or portkey- but flying is still the most reliable way of getting across the damn ocean. I don't like being out of touch with the ground." 

"Is that why you don't usually wear shoes?" 

Sama's face flushed a deeper red, and Remus looked amused. "Something like that." she said and turned her attention out the window and into the clouds. Remus studied the witch carefully. Her grayish brown hair was swept back from her face and fell between her shoulder blades. Her blue-black eyes were turned toward the window, and her pale skin looked translucent even in the ugly airplane lighting. Remus closed his eyes. Between the full moon six days ago, and the time change, this traveling was wearing him out. With a sigh, he wondered what Sirius was doing. And how Harry and his friends were getting on. They had just started their fifth year at Hogwarts, and even though Sirius was still a wanted criminal, he was also working with the Order- although precious few people actually knew about it. Sirius had been staying with him that summer as they tried to get the Order back together, but then Dumbledore had an assignment for him, and it had been a while since he'd written a letter to Remus. 

Sama turned back to her companion and noticed how thin and pale he looked at rest. She wondered about the perpetual sadness that hung about him. He had been curious, she knew about her little village- and Wolfgate being so secure a place. She had watched the questions flicker about his eyes, but he asked only a few- and the ones he chose were not the ones he wanted the answers to the most. Sama sensed that he had secrets, too, and perhaps that was why he did not ask the questions about her life that most interested him. She smiled and reflected wryly to herself. He would probably freak out if he found out the village was populated almost entirely by werewolves. 

End Part One 

_ Author's Note: Thanks to Gwen (and Ryan) for finding my creative writing skills on a dark and dusty shelf and having the kindness to blow off the worst of the cobwebs, and return them to me. They may be rusty and dusty with disuse, but I am enjoying polishing them. _

_ Disclaimers: Sama, Wolf Hollow, and the Academy for the Magical Arts and Sciences with all inhabitants mentioned and implied are mine. The universe they help populate in this incarnation, and all other characters belong to J.K. Rowling. No copyright infringement is intended. No money will be made from this fiction. _


	2. Part Two- Wild Magic

## Full Moon Rising Part Two

Landing in London and catching the train to Hogsmeade was a late night adventure of sorts. The minute they disembarked, Remus noticed with amusement as Sama kicked off the sandals and packed them away again. They stopped in at the Three Broomsticks for a bite to eat before heading up to the school. Remus took the lead as they mounted the steps up to the door and knocked. Albus Dumbledore himself answered the door almost before Remus had finished knocking. 

"Remus! How wonderful! You made it back in good time. Come in, come in. You must be Isamatia Canid." 

"Please, headmaster, its Sama." 

"Of course, of course. Sama. Welcome to Hogwarts! I imagine you are both tired. Let me- Oh! Minerva! Good. Please show Remus and Sama to sleeping quarters. I will see you directly after breakfast in the morning." With that, her first meeting with the great Albus Dumbledore was very quickly over. 

Sama followed the older witch gratefully to a comfortable room in one of the castle's many turrets. After unpacking the few things she had brought, she flung open the window to look at the stars. 

The waning moon hung in the sky as she stared up at the stars. They didn't look much different here than they did from home, but a wave of homesickness washed over her. She realized it may be months before she rejoined the wolf council. So, she mused, because of her expertise with wild magics, she was in a foreign land and she knew she would have to be careful. This was England. There were rumors they didn't like werewolves- persecuted werewolves- even killed werewolves. She remembered the stories from her childhood- when this distant relative, or that one met with prejudice and loathing from the wizarding community. The there was the belief that werewolves were followers of the dark arts by nature, which was patently ridiculous. It was these types of attitudes that made her ancestors look for a place to settle. They found a valley they could shield from the outside world, to raise their families and live in peace. They named it Wolf Hollow, and for a very long time kept it far away from muggles and wizarding communities alike. 

The horror of the prejudice toward werewolves was still around and had touched them all not so long ago when a group of wizards on the European continent found out there was a werewolf living among them. They'd turned on her cousin Jacob then, all his friends and colleagues, nearly killing him. He had barely gotten away with his life. Jacob wore a patch where one eye used to be, and he still walked with a limp. He never left Wolf Hollow now. Sama doubted he ever would. Over and over it had been drummed into her that her village and farm were the only sanctuary in a world that hated and feared her kind. 

Sama shivered. Most of the violence, she supposed was in reaction to the wolf-bit. The wolf-bit were born human, and warred constantly with the wolf within once a month when the infection took over- it drove most of them mad. Many of them went on berserker rampages while transformed, especially those bit as adults, and the ones it didn't drive mad were ashamed of what they were. They lived their lives alone, friendless, without mates, without breeding. They either died alone, or were killed by wizards who hunted them down and thought them evil. She'd even heard of some that finally snapped and took their own lives unable to live with the monthly pain of transforming. 

The wolf-born were different. They were more in control, at home as much in wolfskin as out. They didn't suffer at the full moon as much, the illness and tiredness was lessened, and strengthening potions helped with the effects they did feel. The sickness that was the result of the monthly change for the wolf-bit was the side effect of the warring within between beast and human. Those born to the change were never fully wolf, nor fully human. Nature- and no little bit of wild magic- had created a balance between human and wolf that made the change easier to bear. 

Sama thought of her extended family, they were mostly all wolf-born. Occasionally, a child was born who did not feel the moonsong, and did not change. Others, like her, were extra sensitive, and could feel the wild magic instinctively. As with any form of wild magic, a balance was very difficult to attain. It was partially because of this extra sensitivity to wild magic that Sama had gravitated to the study of all forms of it, no matter how obscure. 

She thought about the farm that had stood as the residence for the Keeper of the Gate for nearly one hundred years. The Keeper's responsibilities lay in upholding the spells that kept the wolfpack in the valley during the full moon. The Keeper also anchored the shielding spells at the farm, to keep the valley hidden from all- Muggles and wizarding folk alike. The werewolves she protected had learned again and again to be wary of the outside world. 

Wolfgate Farm is their a safe haven. As long as there was that secure place for them to be at the full moon, many of her family spent a normal life in the wizarding world. The permanent portkey system had assisted with this greatly. They could all gather at Wolf Hollow the night of the full moon, run with the pack, and still be back at work the next day. Most of their colleagues didn't even know their associates were werewolves. The community was a well-kept secret among the members of the pack and the highest echelon of the American Ministry of Magic. 

Although, she mused, if she was honest, part of the reason she stayed in the valley so long was not her responsibility as Keeper of the Gate, but fear. She feared the outside world. She traveled to the Academy every day, but had always returned to Wolfgate Farm. She hid behind her responsibility as Keeper to justify not living on the school grounds as most of the other teachers did. They all knew what she was, and she had the feeling some of them were glad she kept herself apart from them. They had all grown up with the fear of werewolves, and even knowing none of Sama's pack had ever bitten another human being didn't make her any more welcome to live next door. Four hundred miles away in Wolf Hollow was close enough for most of them. 

From the moment Remus laid out the evil facing his home and friends, she wrestled with the fear of this prejudice that followed her kind throughout the world. Ironically, it was the responsibility she had as Keeper that made her mind up. She would protect her family- and her pack- with her life if need be- it was an oath she had already taken. And if that meant she was exiled for a time to this strange land fighting for the lives and homes of these people- who, if they knew what she was would hate and fear her and all of those she loved- so be it. 

Closing her eyes, she felt about for the unmistakable tingle of wild magic. Most was bound by the human magic. Although the forest at the edges of the school was a deep repository of wild magics, a lot of the wild magic elsewhere had been bound- or tamed. The ley lines had been used and abused here for hundreds of years- they did not wander as freely or unpredictably as they did at home. She followed them outward with her mind, and found them stronger, cleaner, crackling with more energy in the desolate wilderness areas. These places had become repositories of the wild magic that fled from the advances of civilization. Muggles had paved over much of it and weakened ancient bindings. Sama sighed. Even with the quantity of wild magic right outside the school grounds, sleep would not come easily here. 

As Sama sat and watched the stars, thinking of home, Remus was struggling with being back at Hogwarts- this time as only a member of the Order. He knew it would be difficult, not being a teacher. He had loved the year he spent here teaching Defense Against the Dark Arts. It was perhaps the most worthwhile year he had spent in the last fifteen. And after the events of that year, finally knowing the truth about Sirius' innocence was a gift he couldn't have foreseen. That was the best and most terrible part, knowing what really happened that night when all his friends died. Pettigrew had proved himself no friend, and Sirius was innocent- Sirius who had been dead to him for almost thirteen years- until that fateful night under the Whomping Willow. In the place that was the standing symbol of his self hatred, he felt he had been born anew with his friend again beside him. Unfortunately, only a handful of people knew Sirius was innocent, most of them students here at Hogwarts. He wished, as he was climbing wearily into bed, that he knew where Sirius was now. Sirius had spent the early part of the summer with him as they got in touch with all the old Order members. Then Dumbledore sent Sirius off on a mission that would take him out of England, trying to cool off the Ministry's search for the escaped criminal. He wondered as he drifted off to sleep whether Sirius had been the one to find Sama in that odd little village. Perhaps he would send an owl in the morning to ask… if he remembered. 

~*~ 

In the morning, Sama dressed in her usual fashion- the familiar formal pale lavender robes giving her a boost of self-confidence. She had weeks before the next full moon. Perhaps the forest below would welcome a wolf for an evening. Sama felt sure the wizards and witches of Hogwarts wouldn't. 

Opening her door she found the halls filling with students. With nothing better to do, she followed them to the doorway of the great hall where breakfast was about to be served. She looked about her with interest- gazing most at the enchanted ceiling that mimicked the outside sky. Standing in the doorway, she quickly identified a table full of teachers, and four other long tables filling now with students. She remembered Remus had told her about the house system, and she supposed each house sat together. In the middle of these musings, Sama was suddenly knocked off balance as something collided with her from behind. 

"Oh--- I'm sorry! Terribly!" 

"Oi! Ron! What's the hold up up there…" 

Sama looked about her and found a crowd of children in the doorway behind her. The one who had knocked her off balance, a gangly boy with shocking red hair and freckles about sixteen who must have been Ron, was looking down at the floor. She held out her hand to steady him, and found him staring at her feet. 

"It's all right. I'm afraid I stopped rather short in the doorway, didn't I?" Most of the students behind Ron jostled him to the side and eased into the hall and took their places at the tables. A slightly built youth about the same age, with glasses and dark hair sticking out at all angles to his head and a girl with frizzy brown hair and an armful of books both stopped beside Ron. He looked up at her face and said "'Scuse me!" and grabbed their arms as the three of them dashed off to their table. 

Still puzzling over that, Sama didn't notice when Remus came up beside her. Gesturing, he led her up to the teacher's table and sat with her as the stragglers all took their places. When the food appeared, Sama smiled, house-elves, how interesting. She did notice the odd looks some of the other teachers gave her, especially the thin man with the greasy hair and sour expression. He looked toward them with barely disguised loathing, which puzzled Sama a bit until she noticed that he was staring with such hostility at Remus. 

~*~ 

"Did you see the woman with Professor Lupin? She doesn't have any shoes on!" 

"Is that what you were looking at when you ran into her in the doorway?" Hermione stopped reading and looked up at him. 

"Well, she stopped so suddenly I got bumped from behind. I couldn't help it. Who d'you suppose she is?" 

"I wonder why Professor Lupin is back. Do you think he has seen Sir- our friend Snuffles- lately?" Harry looked toward the head table, and sighed. He thought a lot about his godfather, but hadn't received a letter in several weeks and was beginning to worry. 

~*~ 

During breakfast Sama was kept busy trying to follow the conversation of Remus on one side of her and an enormous black haired man, introduced as Hagrid, on the other. He kept peering at her as if she would grow wings and fly away. A sudden mental picture of petite little Portia next to this mountain of a man made her smile and feel less homesick. Portia might not even reach this man's belt buckle. Sama wondered idly if there were giants in his background. 

After breakfast she was ushered by Dumbledore to a sizable room with a large circular table. 

"Remus tells me you had an uneventful trip?" Dumbledore's eyes sparkled at her from behind his glasses. 

"Yes, thank you. Perhaps you could tell me…" 

"Exactly why you are here?" 

"Yes. I am wondering. There isn't a lot of wild magic left unbound in this part of the world. Most of what I felt has been flashes and glimmers. Not a lot to work with- except in a few places." Sama looked out the window to the forest below them. 

"Like the Forbidden Forest?" 

"Is that what that is? Yes. It has a lot of magical energies, most of it wild. And I can feel bits from the magical creatures that live there." 

"We think Voldemort has been gaining power by using wild magic." 

Sama looked back at him, horrified. "If he succeeds in strengthening himself with wild magic, normal spells and enchantments will not work on him. He won't be able to be defeated with any known Dark Arts defense." 

"Yes, well, that is why the Order needs someone who knows a bit about wild magic." Dumbledore smiled slightly, but the twinkle in his eyes had dimmed somewhat. 

"What makes you think he's trying to gather it?" 

"There has been a slow drain on the earth magics in England and on the continent for the past few months. It wasn't until we noticed a peculiar feedback over the ley lines that we checked for it and found the drain. Its not a big drain, but if it's what we suspect…" Dumbledore paused with a faraway look in his eyes. "Quite honestly, my dear, no one thought Voldemort knew enough about wild magics to find them useful in his rise to power." 

"For power like what he wants they wouldn't usually be. If he has someone tapping into the wild magics he could perhaps be healed or strengthened, but wild magic is extremely volatile. It isn't dark magic or light magic- and can't be converted to either. It just is- and it is a more ancient form than spells and charms and such. And it is just as likely to go one way as the other- which is why traditional magical spells are more effective. If he can drain off the power, he might have found a way to bind them to himself… It's very risky…" Her voice trailed off as she considered the possibilities Dumbledore had suggested. 

"We believe his is gathering this power. Although to be honest, we don't yet know for what purpose." 

"From what I've felt, if he is trying to gather wild magic, he will be drawn to the Forbidden Forest down there." 

"Yes. I think, and if you agree, you should start by sealing the Forbidden Forest with wild magic- to try to bind it so he will not be able to strip the power. With your experience, I think you will be an invaluable resource in this area." 

Sama turned to him with surprise. With a sudden flash of understanding, the lingering unease about the probing spell she'd found the morning after the last full moon dissipated. "Was that you probing the spells at Wolfgate Farm?" 

"Not me specifically, but someone who works with me. He's been scouting around the world for likely allies and stumbled over your valley. Finding out about you in that village is very difficult, you know." 

"This person went to Wolf Hollow? Asking about me?" 

"Yes. Your Aunt- Iris- I believe, was a fountain of information. Not all of it… er..." 

"Lucid?" Sama supplied with a smile. 

"Good word!" Dumbledore laughed. "She gave my friend quite the runaround!" 

Sama now remembered Iris had babbled something about a charming man asking after her and she felt very annoyed at herself for not paying attention at the time. "Aunt Iris has some precognitive abilities- although she never does know when she's remembering the past or seeing the future. Not very useful, I'm afraid." 

"Ah. His report on his tea with your Aunt was a bit… jumbled. She told him not to forget the lake. I confess it sounds odd, but he said she mentioned it several times so he included it in the report- no matter how daft it sounded." 

"Not to forget the lake? She said something similar to Remus and I before we left…" Sama trailed off puzzling over the cryptic message. Dumbledore stood. 

"About the forest, you should go see Hagrid. He knows the ins and outs of the forest and it's inhabitants better than anyone. He has one of his classes now, but they should be just about ready to break up by the time you get down there. I wish I could join you my dear, but I must get back to my office." 

"Yes, of course." Sama murmured as he ushered her out the door and gave her basic directions to Hagrid's cottage. Lost in thought, she wandered down through the twisty halls of Hogwarts and exited out onto the grounds. 

She heard the class before she saw them. A group of young men and women in an enclosure were struggling with what looked like large orange and grey lizards moving about in a bonfire. Sama remembered part of a lullaby about fire salamanders. She climbed the fence, putting her hand out when she was close enough for the salamanders to hear, and started to hum it. The wild magic grew at the tips of her fingers as she focused it outward toward the cold and confused salamanders. Hagrid was yelling encouragement to the students, telling them that catching the salamanders was only the first step to harvesting the oil that was a useful flame retardant. Sama moved closer and started singing softly of the comfort of a crackling fire and warmth of the ember-bed. Slowly, the fire salamanders calmed their frantic moving and listened as her song wove a spell around them. 

"Well don' go and waste the gift she's givin' yeh! Harvest th' oil like I tol' yeh!" Hagrid's voice rolled over them, and the students- grimy, sooty and scorched in places where their flame repellant charm had worn off, moved gingerly towards the salamanders. They stroked the creatures' throats and pressed on the glands behind their shoulders to harvest the bright orange oil into their collection jars. Throughout the process Sama moved closer and sang of heat rising off cooling lava and the hottest embers burning in the firepits of their native homes. The salamanders sat as if paralyzed throughout the process and when the last student had collected his jar and backed away from the burning bonfire Sama let her song end, releasing the magic. When the last note had faded away, the salamanders started moving again in and among the heart of the fire. 

"Well, tha' was swell, tha' was!" Hagrid's voice boomed out and the students looked at her with awe. Sama smiled. 

"That was more than amazing, Sama," a low voice from behind her said. 

Turning, she found Remus smiling at her from beyond the fence. "I saw you from the castle and came down. I understand Hagrid's classes are… unusual." 

"Yes. Harvesting the oil from fire salamanders is challenging. More so when only conventional spells and charms are being used. They move too quickly to place a charm on them, and they tend to die when enchanted." 

There was a snapping sound behind them as the fire salamanders burrowed beneath the fire into the embers, and the bonfire collapsed on top of them, effectively sealing them in the warmth. Hagrid dismissed his class of fifth year Gryffindor and Slytherin students as a group of seventh year students came down to crate the salamanders and return them to their lava pits as part of their own Advanced Apparation Technique class. The trio from her run-in at breakfast stayed behind to speak with the Hagrid. Remus watched them for a moment, and then the group came over to speak with them. 

"How did you do that?" 

"Professor! Did you see?" 

"Professor Lupin- wasn't that brilliant?!" 

"Well, now, tha' was special. Can' say I eve' saw anythin' like it!" 

"Hermione, Ron, Harry, have you met Sama Canid?" 

The three students flushed a bit at Remus' gentle reminder, and greeted Sama before asking another round of questions. 

"What was that? What did you do to them?" this was from Hermione. 

"Did you hypnotise them?" came from Harry 

"Can I learn that?" Ron asked plaintively. 

"I teach Theory and Practice of Wild Magics at the Academy for the Magical Arts and Sciences in the States." 

"Wild Magics? I've never heard of it!" Hermione sounded a bit put out. 

"The wild magics are an ancient branch of magical studies that is quite obscure. I am not surprised you haven't heard anything about it. Harry, it wasn't hypnotism, but a suggestion that they were home, and warm, and liked where they were. It calmed them down, soothed them." She turned to the red haired boy and smiled. "I am sure you could learn it if you chose to, but I don't know as that will be part of your schooling here." Sama patiently answered each of their questions until Remus gently reminded them they would be late for their next class if they didn't get a move on. 

Exclaiming over this new form of magic, the trio moved off towards the castle. 

Hagrid smiled down at her. "I suppose Professor Dumbledore sent yeh down ta see me?" 

Sama looked up at the giant of a man and smiled back. "Yes. He thought you would be the perfect person to show me your Forbidden Forest." 

"Aye, it's right dangerous, sometimes. Although, wit' the way yeh got the salamandahs witched, I might have teh feel a bit sorry fer the creatures innat wood." His voice rumbled pleasantly and Sama realized he was chuckling. Laughing a bit herself, she allowed him to escort her into the forest. 

As soon as she entered the forest proper Sama let out a breath of relief. She hadn't realized how tense she had become from being in an area of totally controlled magic. Relaxing more the deeper into the forest they walked, she dug her toes into the deep loam and decaying plant matter. Stopping at a small clearing she pulled away from the two wizards, closed her eyes, raised her wand and started to hum. It was a simple, gentle song. She tested the weave of the earth magic in this place. She sent out a call for the magics overlaid here to show her their inner workings, and softly the forest returned her song to her with the answers to her querying. 

Remus and Hagrid watched as a faint glow started to gather around her and move in patterns that she put out her hands to "see" with fingertips and wand. Gently sifting through the air she lowered her hands, opened her eyes, and let the humming fade. The glow lessened as the sound died, and soon she was standing quietly in the clearing. She turned to the two men, and smiled. "This forest- knows it shelters. It has felt and been many things in the last millennia, but it is primarily a protector of all the creatures it houses. There are old spells, too- laid down when Hogwarts was new. The wild magic is strong here. I think we can set some additional wards and spells to help it do what it is accustomed to doing." She cocked her head as if listening to a whisper "It likes you Hagrid. The wild magic accepts you as part of itself. It is why you have an affinity for all kinds of magical creatures. Are you part giant? Many of the giants I've met have similar gifts with wild magics." Hagrid paled and sputtered a bit at the last, but Sama went on without noticing. "Remus, the forest knows you, too. It acknowledges you as a brother-spirit. You schooled at Hogwarts, but the best times of your life were spent here, in this forest. It remembers," she paused, and then turned back to the forest. "It will accept the wards and spells we three will set about it- we need to be careful about not binding it too tightly, the inhabitants have their own bonds with this place, we mustn't break them." She was quiet for a few moments, considering. "Halloween- the moon will be waning. That will be the proper time to set our spells and wards. Voldemort's power will not grow significantly until then, and we'll need the time to prepare." Falling silent she shivered slightly. "He's been here before, like a cancer, the wild magics rejected him, but he is different somehow. Not- fully natural. Harnessing the wild magic for him will work for awhile- but at some point the bindings will revolt and break. Wild magic will only go so far with him before it rejects him outright. This backlash may not kill him, but I think it will hurt. Maybe badly. But before that happens he'll have power…" 

Sama swayed suddenly as if she would fall, and Remus and Hagrid stepped quickly to her side and supported her. "A little backlash of my own," she murmured as Hagrid swung her up into his arms and carried her back to his hut. 

~*~ 

"Does that always happen?" Remus asked after Hagrid had served up some tea for the three of them. 

She sighed, "Like anything with wild magic, not always. Your forest is… powerful. It is one of the only spots in the area where the wild magic is free, and like attracts like. I wouldn't be surprised to learn if it has increased in strength over the last few hundred years as the wild magics are driven out of human inhabited places." 

"That is precisely why it must be protected from Voldemort- and any of his supporters." Dumbledore said from the doorway. 

Hagrid and Remus both rose to their feet as Dumbledore approached. Sama made to rise as well but Dumbledore forestalled her. 

"Don't get up, my dear. We cannot let Voldemort gain control of the wild magic in the Forbidden Forest. Did you learn what you needed to know?" 

"Yes. We have about eight weeks until Halloween. The powers will be- malleable- at that time. For him as well as us but that cannot be helped." She winced a bit stroking her temple. "It's only one night after the full moon, but that also cannot be helped." Sama murmured almost to herself. 

Remus caught the last bit she whispered, and looked at her sharply. Did she suspect something, he wondered. 

"Headmaster Dumbledore?" Sama had turned her attention back to the people around the table. "If possible, I think it would be best if Remus and Hagrid helped with the spells and wards. The magic of the forest recognizes them both." 

"But-" Hagrid started to sputter "I don' even have a wand… I don' know enough… they don' let me…" 

"Hagrid," Sama turned her full attention to the big man. "I know you don't think you would be of help, but you are already using wild magics. The creatures that you have an affinity for, the fierce magical beasts- they are drawn to you for a reason. You are perhaps the closest Hogwarts has to an expert in wild magics. It's a great gift you have, and I have a feeling your participation will be invaluable to our success." 

Dumbledore was no less surprised than the gamekeeper, but he knew Hagrid's strengths better than Hagrid himself did and nodded slightly to himself, impressed that Sama had figured out as much as she had in such a short amount of time. 

"Professor Dumbledore," Remus spoke softly as Hagrid leaned over to Sama and she talked to him quietly. "Halloween- it's only one night past the full moon. I'll still be pretty sick and weak. I don't know how much help I'll be. Maybe it would be better if you chose someone else." 

"You haven't told her." It was a statement, not a question. Dumbledore looked over at Remus. "I think you might have to give her an explanation why you can't be there." 

Remus stared into his teacup. The expression on his face was haunted, remembering all the times when people had shunned him when they found out what he was. Dumbledore's voice came even softer to him "What about the times people accepted you for who you are? Besides, unless I miss my guess, I think Sama will react differently than you think." Remus looked up at Dumbledore surprised. 

Dumbledore rose, effectively putting off the questions in Remus' eyes. "I think it time I went back up to the castle. Sama, please make whatever preparations you deem necessary. I will have Professor Sprout and Professor Snape assist you with any materials you may need. Remus, I will also speak with Severus about that potion you will be wanting." 

"Thank you, Headmaster." 

"Thank you, Professor." 

End Part Two 

_ Author's Notes: To those that read and reviewed part one, thank you. That was quite unexpected-and an amazing treat. My own thoughts-- for those who question whether or not Remus would recognize another werewolf right off the bat-it's not as if they all wear a blinking neon sign that says "I am a WEREWOLF!" Anyway, this is my take on the Rowling Universe-if you see it differently you are always welcome to write it that way- and I look forward to reading them all!_

_ Disclaimers: Sama, Wolf Hollow, and the Academy for the Magical Arts and Sciences with all inhabitants mentioned and implied are mine. The universe they help populate in this incarnation, and all other characters belong to J.K. Rowling. No copyright infringement is intended. No money will be made from this fiction._


	3. Part Three- First Full Moon

## Full Moon Rising Part Three

Two weeks later Sama had learned the ins and outs of Hogwarts. She spent much of her time researching spells in the library with the assistance of Madam Pince, or down with Hagrid assisting his classes on _Care of Magical Creatures_. She had grown used to the ghosts inhabiting the halls, and even learned to ignore Peeves, the resident poltergeist. She learned about the inter-house rivalries-- so different from the Academy's own system. The students had warmed to Hagrid's classes, although she noticed several young men and women who seemed to sneer whenever anyone else succeeded at any task. She noticed most of these students were part of Slytherin, one of the four Houses. She wondered about this, but thought perhaps the inter-house rivalries went deeper than she first supposed. A few of the more precocious students in Hagrid's classes had even started humming at the most fearsome creatures to calm them down. 

Sama always smiled at this, and wished Portia was here to assist those with the affinity for song-magic- like young Ron Weasley. Ron had an almost innate talent for finding the patterns in song, which pleased Sama. She also saw Remus occasionally, but they hadn't spoken in depth since the day they'd been at Hagrid's together. It almost seemed like he was avoiding her, but she was too busy to wonder. Idly, she wondered if he suspected what she was and was avoiding her for that reason. 

Sama found Professor Sprout friendly and helpful- if more likely to talk to her plants than to Sama. Professor Snape was - different from any teacher she had ever met. Sama thought she never in her life met an educator who disliked students so much. He looked at her like she was something he'd just scraped off the bottom of his shoe, but since that seemed to be an expression permanently affixed to his face, she decided it couldn't be personal. Outside of meal times, she only saw him when he was holed up in his private laboratory mixing the potions whose rank odor permeated the air. For all his gifts with potions, brewing them made him incredibly sour. Sama only went to the potions master to gather supplies she needed in working her protection bindings. Most of her preparations were kept in her room, or at Hagrid's. 

While Sama was settling in, Remus found himself avoiding her more and more. He spent some time with Harry and some of the other students, and he worked very hard learning as much as he could about wild magic so he could be of some assistance to her. But he wondered what she knew or suspected about him. Living at Hogwarts again was as difficult as he thought it would be. He had not yet done what the headmaster suggested and told her about himself. Remus had sent an owl to Sirius the morning after they'd arrived at Hogwarts, but no reply had come- and the owl hadn't returned. Sirius was on assignment for the Order traveling about and Remus wondered if the owl found him. 

Then, quite unexpectedly, he received a letter from Sirius- in a circuitous way. Sirius sent a letter to Harry with a second note enclosed to him. Harry stopped him in the hallway on his way back from dinner one night and thrust the letter into his hand with a quick smile. "It's from _him_," was all the boy whispered on his way past. 

Glancing at the envelope with the name 'Moony' on it in large strong handwriting, Remus smiled his first real smile in a long time. When he was alone, he opened the envelope and read: 

_ Moony,  
Your owl finally found me in the heart of Asia! Sending this care of Harry- your owl was in no condition to make a return trip. I wish you'd been with me in America. I turned Dumbledore on to a couple of good leads for help for the Order. No one knew me. I was an anonymous face! Never underestimate the insular American view of the world. While there, I found this nice little valley in the middle of nowhere- you'd have loved it! Lots of space to run. The village, although a wizarding community like Hogsmeade is very quaint- goes by the name of Wolf Hollow. It's all guarded by a powerful witch by the name of Isamatia. Her aunt is off her nut- Calls her niece 'the Keeper of the Gate'- but you can't have everything.   
Don't worry about me- I'll see you soon.  
Padfoot_

The note cheered him, and he understood that Sirius had been the one to find Sama and suggest her to Dumbledore. He realized now that he never knew the name of the little village Sama lived in. Wolfgate Farm in Wolf Hollow- how… very odd. 

~*~ 

At the end of September, Sama met Remus coming from Hagrid's hut. His wan appearance, and the dark circles under his eyes shocked her. 

"Remus! Are you all right?" 

"Yes, just feeling a bit ill. I think I'll go lie down for a while." 

Sama watched as he slowly made his way up to the castle. When she turned back to the hut she found Hagrid watching her from his doorway. 

"He'll be alrigh' Miss." Sama smiled. No matter how many times she had asked him to call her by name he insisted on the formal title. He always seemed impressed at the way she 'charmed' his beasts. 

"Do you know what's wrong with him? He looks awful!" Sama wasn't feeling all that terrific herself with the full moon the next night. It would be the first time in her life she wouldn't be running with the pack and she was on edge; nervous about running on her own. She was also well aware she would need to be extremely careful no one found out about her secret. 

"Eh… It's not fer me teh say." Hagrid looked upset by her question, so she dropped the subject. Turning their attention to the wards and spells they were preparing for Halloween they pulled out the perpetually changing and unfinished maps of the Forbidden Forest and discussed the various creatures that lived there. She scribbled notes on an already filled parchment that outlined the modifications they'd need to make to accommodate each species that might be affected by the binding magic. Sama was relieved to find Hagrid's knowledge of the inhabitants of the forest almost limitless. 

Later, when going up to her room, she noticed light under Remus' door and decided to see if he was still awake. She knocked softly, and for long minutes she thought he'd fallen asleep with his light burning. Then she heard faint noises and his door swung open. He looked at her with red-rimmed eyes and she reached out, shocked at his feverish gaze. 

"Remus!" He gestured vaguely for her to enter, and stumbled back across the room. "What's wrong?" 

"I am not at all well at the moment." He sank into the chair by the window. There was a blanket thrown over the arm, and Sama realized he must have been dozing. 

"You should tell me what's going on! I'm worried about you." She closed the door, crossed to the chair and crouched next to him. Putting out a hand, she noticed he felt quite warm to the touch. 

He gazed at her from under half lidded eyes and noticed that she was pale and tired, her brows drawn together and lines of worry etched her face. "Couple of days. I'll be all right. I just need to sleep. You should go." 

"I am not leaving you here in this state. You should be in the infirmary. Madam Pomfrey should be looking out for you!" 

Remus laughed hollowly. "She's got enough to do without holding my hand. She's seen it before." 

Realizing she would not be able to change his mind, Sama reached out and took his hand. Putting her other hand up to his cheek and holding his face gently she looked into his eyes. "I… I'll check on you tomorrow. I've got… a… research appointment tomorrow evening, but I will see you before." 

She closed his door softly behind her and silently made her way up to her own room. Once there, she threw open the curtains and the light from the nearly full moon poured through her window. Opening the window to the autumn evening's breeze she stood and breathed in the scents of the outside air. Tomorrow she knew, the scents would be sharper- more focused. Tomorrow night she would escape this castle and steep herself in the wildness of the forest below, running far from her pack's territory. A lone wolf. It would be dangerous, but the longer she stood gazing out at the cold blue light the more she wanted it. The wolf had no cares but running with packmates and chasing the moon. It was the first time since she was old enough to join it that she wouldn't be at pack council, or running in Wolf Hollow. The thought made her sad, and oddly glad at the same time. She had never felt this- thrill of danger- before. The wards that were her duty to keep in place always held the world at arm's length. She had never run un-penned before. It would be a truly freeing experience. 

Sama thought of her little cousin whose first pack running would be tomorrow night. For the first time Julia would run as one of the pack, and not be kept back with the children. Sama's own first pack running was in summer. That night was one of those warm lazy summer nights, the type where the rich scents of summer earth rose like tendrils of fog. To run under the clear and brilliant sky was pure bliss. She had never felt so free, like she could run up the moonbeams to live in the brightly glowing orb hanging in the sky. 

That next fall she was accepted at the Academy, and only came home at the full moon and school breaks. The night Sama took her vows, accepting the blood-mark that bound her as Keeper had been one of the proudest of her life. She had graduated from the Academy with top marks that spring, and had spent her free time learning all she could about wild magic. When the school offered her a teaching position, she accepted delightedly. Then, when Grandmother Canid, the oldest, and most powerful witch of the pack, stepped down after forty years service as Keeper, she supported Sama as her successor. The portkey system let her hold both posts, and she thrived on the responsibilities. Aside from twice annual journeys to New York for wizarding supplies, she never traveled from the Academy or Wolf Hollow. Then… then Remus had come, and turned her safe little life upside down. Now she was facing off against Voldemort. She had reviewed the Daily Prophet articles from his last bid for power fifteen years ago. Those had been dark days indeed. She realized that her safe little life would never be same. Voldemort must not be allowed to return to power. Duty started this, but she'd found a new purpose. She would protect Hogwarts as she would protect the pack- with her life if need be. 

Sighing, she turned away from the window and prepared for bed knowing the next night she could forget all this, and be free to run with the moon. 

The next morning, Sama skipped breakfast, taking instead some tea. As was the custom among the pack, she fasted the day of the full moon, drinking only clear fluids. One of the founders of the Pack had discovered, quite by accident, that fasting before the change made it quicker and less painful. 

Early that afternoon she went to Remus' rooms and found him still in his bathrobe and pajamas, but awake. Being Saturday, he had a guest. Harry was serving him tea when she knocked. 

"Hullo, Miss Sama." 

"Hello, Harry. How's our patient?" 

"I'm fine, I just need rest." Remus' eyes had a feverish glow to them and he did not look fine. 

At that moment Professor Snape entered and paused his glance flickering from Remus to Harry to Sama. She couldn't help but notice the look of undisguised loathing that filled his face when he looked at the man and boy. When he turned his glare to her she almost took a step back, for the animosity had not lessened. He was holding a faintly smoking goblet, which he silently brought to Remus and plunked it on the table beside his chair. Remus glanced up into the taller man's face as some of the potion sloshed over the side. 

"Best drink it now." was all Professor Snape said, a sneer curling his upper lip. 

"Thank you, Severus," Remus said mildly. Snape exited the room with a haughty glare aimed at Harry. Harry just looked sad as he watched Remus reach for the goblet. 

"Harry, you'd better go back to Gryffindor tower." Remus continued as picked up the now dripping goblet and sipped the potion. He grimaced at the taste and looked up at Sama. "You should go, too. I'll see you both out." 

Sama looked like she wanted to say something, but she closed her mouth sharply without speaking. Disturbed, she followed Harry out. 

Once in the hallway, with the door closed behind him, she turned back with her hand raised. Lightly, she laid her hand on the door. "Miss Sama?" Harry's voice broke into her thoughts. 

"Yes, Harry?" 

"He really will be all right." Harry looked like he wanted to add something- but then he must have thought better of it, because he didn't go on. 

Sama turned to him with a very serious expression. "There is something I cannot understand. I can feel the pain in him. It emanates out from him in waves. Do you know what is causing this?" 

Harry looked uncomfortable. "Yes, Miss. But it's not my secret to tell. He will be all right." He turned and slowly went towards Gryffindor's common room. 

Sama watched him go, puzzled that no one who seemed to know what was wrong with Remus could help him. There was something vaguely familiar about it all, but she couldn't quite put her finger on the answer. As she walked up to her own room, she decided to let her sub-conscious work on this particular problem. She had a night full of activity to prepare for. 

After finishing the potion, Remus watched out the window as the sun moved across the sky and began to set. Sighing, he went and pulled on his oldest robe and quietly crossed to the door and opened it. Remus had realized that staying at Hogwarts was risky since the Wolfsbane Potion had been proven unpredictable at best. When he was sure he would stay through Halloween, he'd made the decision to spend the nights of the full moon in the Shrieking Shack. Silently he exited the castle and went to the whomping willow, stabbed the knot with a branch, and disappeared under it. 

Moments after he disappeared, Sama crossed the grounds to the edge of the Forbidden Forest. No one saw her melt into the forest as the moon began to rise. She felt the tides in her body move and reverse themselves as the moon started her climb into the sky. Quickly disrobing, she hung the dark cloak and pale robe over a branch. The change began at her toes and fingertips, traveling inward and upward to the hair on the top of her head. It was a painful change, but one she was used to. As her spine curved and lengthened and then contracted, a tail emerged and her face distorted and cracked. Her jaws moved to make space for the lengthening white teeth that were suddenly too big for her mouth. Her finger bones broke and retracted into claws as pale gray hair emerged in bands across her body. Her flesh rippled; she fell to all four feet, growling softly at the pain moving through her body in waves. Her eyes now glowed with a fierce light of their own, and flashed in the silver pale light. Her senses doubled in intensity, bringing the forest into sharp focus, and then doubled again. As the world sprang to life, her senses one by one woke to the pure joy of being in this new land. Night blackness faded into shades of gray as her eyes changed into the predators. On all fours she stretched and snapped waiting for the transformation to be complete before beginning her headlong chase after that elusive prize, the glowing orb of the moon. 

Once fully changed, she started moving through the tall trees, slowly, to get used to her new surroundings. The scents were new; the sounds odd. Even the magic tides in this place were different, and she didn't have the comforting presence of the pack close around her. Once she felt a little less strange, and she judged she was far enough away from the school, she gave full throat to her joy in a long ebullient howl. 

On the floor of the Shrieking Shack, where Remus lay in self-exile, wolf's ears pricked up at the howl that now sang from the Forbidden Forest. There was another werewolf out there! And near to the school! Remus thought thickly through the wolf's brain that he needed to stop it, to protect the school from this threat that only he was aware of. The man within the beast railed at the thought that he couldn't tell anyone of the danger. Rage and fear battled within him and he flung himself at the boarded up windows again and again until his man's brain calmed the wolf enough to realize he needed to think like a man and not a beast. Scraping and testing each board with his paws, he found one where the corner wasn't nailed as tightly as it should have been and he worried at the weak spot until it gave way and he pushed himself out. Whining a bit when his flesh caught and tore on the rough boards, paws scrabbling for purchase, he pulled himself free of the shack. Pausing to locate the source of the howling, he heard it echo up from the forest not too far from the school. He couldn't tell which way the wolf was moving but he started running anyway, fighting back the urge to return the howl. 

It was a glorious run! Sama howled and howled and ran and ran. Stopping to drink from a burbling brook she felt the absence of friends and family keenly, but the freedom- knowing nothing penned her up was an incredible feeling. She ran headlong this way and that, catching a scent and following it- until she caught another interesting scent and followed that one. She startled a young stag and ran after it for the thrill of the chase, and then abandoned it as a new scent caught her attention. Paws finding purchase on the uneven forest floor, she moved at full speed, and wholly unaware, toward a silvery pale unicorn. Too late to stop, she twisted mid air and leapt over the animal and with a wide grin and her tongue lolling from her mouth. She didn't pause even as it whinnied in aggravated protest. Running for the sheer joy of it and the desire to out run her responsibilities, Sama let the wolf take over, and following this base instinct, she reached a place of peace. 

A sudden low growl stopped her short. Wheeling about she found herself facing a huge dark brown male wolf. A little bit of her brain told her 'Ah, so this _is_ someone's territory' as she stood stock-still and stared. She stepped closer and lowered her head supplicatingly. Eyes aglow, the wolf stood stiff legged and continued growling menacingly, his hackles raised in challenge. Moving slowly, she rolled over and showed her throat. The wolf continued to stare at her. Sitting up, she shook herself playfully, and sat, panting. 

Remus didn't know what to think when the pale gray wolf made overtures of play. Confused, he cocked his head and looked into the dark blue eyes of this wolf. It was a female, and all his instincts told him she had to be a werewolf. As long as he had been at Hogwarts he'd been the only werewolf in the area- perhaps the only one left in Britain. But she wasn't acting like a werewolf. She didn't seem threatening at all. The way she sat clearly stated that she was waiting for him to make the first move. To greet her or not. Warily, Remus stepped forward, and slowly sniffed her. Her odor was of beast, but underlying that was the faint, spicy smell of- vanilla and cinnamon? It was vaguely familiar, although his wolf's brain couldn't process it. 

The female wolf cocked her head and then licked the underside of his jaw. His scent was strange and familiar, but the witch inside the wolf couldn't place it. With a mental shake, she let the wolf instinct take over. Rising, she turned away from him and slowly moved deeper into the forest, and then turned and looked at him in clear invitation. _Run with me._

Not since the nights of Moony, Padfoot, Prongs, and Wormtail had Remus felt so at home in wolf skin. Someone to run with after all these years. It took him no time at all to decide, and soon they were running side by side through the Forbidden Forest. 

It was a marvelous run. Sama couldn't remember a time when she'd had so much fun. The new wolf was strange, but running with the pack her entire life, she had never not known all of her runningmates. It was exhilarating and euphoric. He showed her bits of the forest he obviously knew. She followed him willingly, wanting to connect with a friendly being. Exhausted, as the moon started to set, she led him slowly back towards the edge of the forest, and sank contentedly down to await dawn and the changes to come with the rising sun. The other wolf also lay down on the soft moss and slowly both drifted into lethargy, and then slept. 

~*~ 

That morning, not long after dawn, Sama found herself curled in a hollow at the base of a massive tree covered in mud and aching from the run. She stretched, and she remembered the other wolf. Sitting up carefully, she scanned the clearing. Yes, her robe and cloak were on the branch of that tree- dew damp, but there- and a few feet away a man curled on his side, back to her. He was naked, but what she noticed first was the old and faintly puckered silvered bite mark on his upper arm, near the shoulder. Her eyes showed the pity she felt as she realized he must be one of the wolf-bit. Then she recognized his form, although his face was turned away. 

"Remus!?!" Staggering to her feet, she grabbed her robe and drew it around her shoulders. He was not looking well, and as the brisk breeze raised goosebumps on his body, he started to shiver. She scooped up her cloak and covered him quickly to try to warm him up. Remus- wolf-bit. No wonder he'd looked ill the past day or so. She flushed, annoyed that she had missed all the signs. He woke as she chafed his hands in hers to stimulate the blood flow. Seeing her disheveled appearance, he was confused, befuddled, and more thoroughly exhausted than he could remember ever being. 

"Sama?" his voice was gravelly as he tried to sit up. "What are you doing here?" He was covered in her cloak. He could smell her on it- a spicy scent that pulled at his memory, and her robe was all askew, and was that-- mud all over her? Suddenly remembering the night and the other wolf he glanced around the little clearing and she smiled at him. 

"Looking for someone- or something?" 

He cleared his throat as realization dawned "Y… You were the other…?" She saw him struggle with the word and had a sudden glimpse into his lonely life. 

"Werewolf?" He flinched as she named the heart of his self-loathing. "Yes," she continued, not without pride. "I am wolf-born." 

"What?" Remus looked a little ill and shuddered at the thought of having been born a werewolf. 

"It is nothing to be ashamed of!" she said sharply. Her tone gentled "You are one of the wolf-bit, aren't you?" 

"Yes." He couldn't meet her eyes. 

"You'll be feeling it about now; come on. We should get you back up to school." She helped him to his feet and he secured the cloak more firmly around himself. She turned away a moment and smoothed her own robe demurely closed, quickly doing up the fasteners she had missed when she'd pulled it on. He reached out and plucked a stray leaf from her hair and she half turned and smiled. "Well, apart from the grime, I guess we look all right." 

Supporting him, they crossed the dew soaked ground to the castle. But as they reached them, the doors swung open. Dumbledore stood on the other side, his smile sparkling as they passed him and moved towards the stairway. 

"Ah, welcome. You'll both want to get cleaned up. I'll have breakfast sent up to you when you're ready." 

His eyes twinkled at them. Sama whispered to Remus "Do you think he knew I was a werewolf when he invited me here?" 

Remus smiled faintly and replied "Probably." Though tired, he wondered if Sirius had known what Sama was when he sent word to Dumbledore. A realization dawned on him as they approached his room. Wolf Hollow. Wolfgate Farm. Keeper of the Gate. The land of the barefoot people. "Are you all… werewolves?" 

As she followed his train of thought, she grinned at his shocked expression. "Not all… But most of the inhabitants of Wolf Hollow are either werewolves, or their mates." 

"Mates…" his voice failed him and he swallowed. "They were all… Aunt Iris, Julia, little Barefoot Bobby?" His tone was incredulous. 

"Yes, yes and yes." Her laughter rang in her voice. "When you've cleaned up a bit, I'll come back with a potion I think will help you with the fatigue and we'll have breakfast. And Remus? We'll talk." 

He watched her pad down the hall to her own room. Just before she disappeared around the corner he caught her soft humming, and he retreated into his room with his emotions in a tumble. A hot bath would do wonders, he knew. Aching and slow, he moved to draw one. 

~*~ 

When she returned to his room, she was in a clean robe, looking again the part of a powerful witch. Remus admired, from his vantage point of a comfortable chair, the graceful fluidity of her movements as she mixed a potion. She had with her the little bottles, prepared the night before they left Wolfgate Farm. Every time he thought of her home and village a new wave of amazement swept through him. She poured the entirety of one of the bottles into a glass and twirled the liquid about in the air. To this she added three amber drops from another bottle and he watched in fascination as the mixture bubbled up and became sluggish. When it was smoking slightly, she turned to him with a smile. 

"You're going to hate this, but drink it anyway. It will help you with the fatigue, and should strengthen you. You won't feel as ill." 

Accepting the potion, the odor hit him and he gazed up at her in doubt. 

"Go ahead. It's best if you just swallow it as fast as you can." 

One deep breath was all he allowed himself, after all it couldn't be worse than the Wolfsbane Potion, could it? It could, and it was. He nearly spit the vile mixture back out, but he managed to swallow. Still, it was touch-and-go whether the illness or the cure was to be preferred. When the aftertaste hit him he gagged a bit and grimaced at her. 

"It never does get any better." Sama sighed and Remus could see she had a second dose in her hand ready for herself. "Cheers!" As she drank, he watched a convulsive shudder go through her body. When she finally opened her eyes, they shared a smile. 

"That has got to be the most disgusting thing I've ever tasted- and that includes the Wolfsbane Potion." 

"I wouldn't know. I've never had that particular potion." 

Remus looked at her in surprise. "Never?" 

"The wolf-born never lose themselves in the change. It is part of who we are, who we've always been. We are born both wolf and human." 

Sama and Remus talked for most of the morning. He marveled that her life was so different from his own. She had the support of family and friends, and a community that he could only wish for. In turn, she listened as he spoke about getting the bite, the terror and pain he felt with his first transformation- he was too young to understand what happened-- and the loneliness that permeated his childhood until he came to Hogwarts and found friends. He told her about them, that they hadn't turned away from him when they discovered his secret. Mid morning she left him to sleep. As he drifted off, he realized he was tired, but didn't feel as ill or weak as he usually felt after the full moon. 

As Remus slept, Sama wandered down to see Hagrid. Tired though she was, she was also exhilarated. She spent the day going over the plans they'd already made, realizing that she'd have to play her reed pipes in order for some of the spellworkings to function properly. That meant one less voice for the chant work, but a few calculations showed her it wouldn't make too much of a difference. There were creatures in the wood that might fight against anything they would do, like the centaurs and the unicorns. She was searching for spells that wouldn't touch the animals that may be injured by their bindings. Her pipe music would be helpful in this. The sheer size of the forest made spell working tricky- especially if they were going to try to seal off the wild magic. 

With maps and lists in front of her, she marked off the creatures the spells would not touch. Looking at the list she sighed. The sheer magnitude of the spellworking she was planning scared her. The spells at the farm were bigger, but they had been grown, added to slowly, and maintained carefully for almost a hundred years. This was supposed to happen all in one night. She shook her head. If this worked at all, she would be very surprised. Vowing not to tell Remus and Hagrid how hopeless it seemed, she went back to her calculations. Sometimes if someone didn't know something was impossible, just believing could make all the difference. At least, this is what she kept telling herself. 

End Part Three 

_ Author's Notes: Gratitude to Gwen/Ryan for starting this whole crazy adventure- and sticking by it as it spiraled quickly out of control. Gratitude also to A'jes for stepping aside, in favor of Sama. Although, I think she would have fought him for it if it came to that. Thank you to all my reviewers, you've been a great help and an inspiration. And to all you lurkers out there, just reading, please enjoy- and come back often! _

_ Disclaimers: Sama, Wolf Hollow, and the Academy for the Magical Arts and Sciences with all inhabitants mentioned and implied are mine. The universe they help populate, and all other characters belong to J.K. Rowling. No copyright infringement is intended. No monitory benefit will be made from this fiction._


	4. Part Four- Halloween

## Full Moon Rising, Part Four

A few days later, Sama, Remus and Hagrid were sitting around his fire discussing plans for the spellworking. 

"Remember your aunt's warning? 'Don't forget the lake'." Remus said. 

"I remember. Although I am not sure what she meant for us to do." 

"Wha' d'yeh mean?" Hagrid queried. 

"Water magic is the most ancient of the Old Forms." Sama's eyes held a faraway look. "Water is the life-blood of the world. Without it, everything dies. But it is also mercurial in its magic. Wild magic is downright predictable when compared to water magic. The lake may not accept any bindings- even ones of wild magic." 

"Will Voldemort be able to use it?" 

"I doubt it. It is the one form that is nearly useless to wizards." She considered a moment. "I can't see how it would be possible to wrest power from water. Although, from what I have been reading about Voldemort, he tends to roll over any obstacles. He may have found a way I cannot anticipate…" 

"Can we bind the lake against his efforts as we do the forest?" 

"We can write it into the spells, but whether or not it takes…" she half shrugged. "Merpeople use water magic. They are really the only ones equipped for it. From what little I know, of all the different forms wild magic takes, water magic is the least understood or studied. Even song magic has little effect on water. It's too… malleable." 

"Voldemort has been able to strip more and more wild magic power to further his own ends. Are we any closer to knowing how?" Remus asked. 

"I don't know how he's doing it. I haven't felt a backlash through the ley lines yet. He must have someone maintaining spells to keep it away." She shuddered. She knew that when the backlash hit, this person would likely bear the brunt. It would kill him. 

"I thought you couldn't stop the backlash from happening." 

"I said it wasn't smart. It can be done, but wild magic will always exact a price for its use. Paying that price right away ensures you are alive to use it in the future. Putting it off is nearly always fatal. It's best not to fight it- that just makes it worse." She saw Hagrid pale a little, and he cleared his throat a trifle nervously. 

Remus whistled long and low. "I don't know. Water magic- sealing the whole forest. Seems impossible, doesn't it?" 

"Mmmm…" She wouldn't meet his eyes, and that, more than her non-committal answer, made him apprehensive. 

~*~ 

As the days and weeks passed, Remus, Sama, and Hagrid spent more and more time together creating and testing the spells to seal the forest. Sometimes, in the evenings, Sama would play her reed pipes gently, accompanying the crackling fire and the wind singing in the trees outside. Remus would find himself watching her. She seemed so at ease with herself, in and out of wolfskin. He found himself wishing for the peace she exhibited in her duality. 

Harry, Ron, and Hermione could be found at Hagrid's more and more often in the off hours, playing wizard chess or studying. Sama and Remus helped them with their studies, and in turn they helped with the research for the Forest binding. It surprised Sama that Ron spent more and more time with her. He was learning bits of song magic and assisting her with the controls for spells to seal the forest. She used her pipes to find the melody that would resonate and align itself properly with the magic in the forest. Ron became adept at identifying the song patterns and fitting them to the chanted spells at the parts where they would be most advantageous. Again and again she wished Portia could be here to guide Ron in the finer points, as Hogwarts had no expert in some of the more obscure forms. 

"You've got a gift for song magic, Ron." Sama said one evening. Harry was at Quidditch practice, and Hermione was in the school library. Ron had come down to Hagrid's hut to see Sama, alone. 

"You think so?" He gazed up at her, slightly flushed with pleasure. 

"Yes. It's very rare- the ability to instinctively know what pattern to stress in a melody. Song magic is one of the three cornerstones of learning to control wild magics." She paused, and then smiled. "It's what first got me interested in the practice of wild magic when I was a child. I found it… appropriate." 

"Why?" Ron's face shone with curiosity and undisguised interest. 

"All sorts of things sing, Ron. Not just people." 

"I know- birds and such." 

Sama sighed. "Not just 'birds and such'" she mimicked his response. "Every living thing makes noise. Most things sing- granted, some in a very limited way. It's an ancient and beautiful form of communication. Even if it is just for joy, nothing that sings has _no_ purpose in the sounds." 

"So it was just listening to stuff that got you interested?" he sounded doubtful to the sanity in that. 

"Actually, it was wolfsong." 

Remus looked up from across the room, a smile playing around his mouth. 

"What?" Ron was startled. 

"The songs of wolves. It's a very ancient language." 

"You understand the songs of _wolves_?" He sounded beyond incredulous now. 

"Yes." She shot a look over to Remus and found him watching her. Smiling, she forestalled the next question, effectively ending the fascinating, if strange conversation. "Now back to the practical uses of song magic." 

"The first rule is that song magic helps the practical application of wild magic by forging the bindings," Ron repeated, and then worked his way through the rest of the list of theories she'd assigned him the previous evening before asking another question. "But how does it work with wild magics?" Sama saw his frustration build as he struggled to understand the nebulous quality of song and wild magic. She sighed. She was so quiet for a few minutes that Ron thought maybe she was angry he'd asked the question. He stared down at the parchment in front of him scared she would decide he wasn't bright enough to learn it- gift or no. 

Sama considered carefully. This boy had no background in the wild magical arts as the students of the Academy did. He hadn't done a lot of the foundation work that was required of all Academy first year students. He wanted to know answers to advanced studies questions, and she wanted to explain it so it would make sense within the base of his own traditional magic education. 

Finally she spoke, and as she did he could see she had been struggling to find the words to explain it to him. "Wild magic works best when the person attempting the spell has a clear understanding of what the spell is supposed to do, and how it will work with the earth itself to create the desired effect. _What_ you say, that is the words you use, becomes less important. It's more important _how_ you say it. It is different from the rules of any other magic. You see? You must be specific in how you say something. Wild magic keys into its own types of language- one is the language of the music found in everything- working together to create an effect. Part of the challenge lies in finding the patterns." 

"But you keep saying that the rules of traditional magic can't work with song magic. I don't understand- if there are no rules, how can you ever get anything done?" 

Sama smiled. "Spoken like a true chess player. It's not as if traditional rules _never_ work, it is just unpredictable. Let's take it a step farther. There are patterns in a game of chess, right?" 

"Right. Each different piece can only move in predetermined ways." 

"What do you think would happen if there were two people playing chess, and while one player adhered to the rules, the other didn't- he just moved any piece anywhere he wanted, regardless of whether it was his turn, or even his piece?" 

"It would be chaos. And no fun!" 

"For the one following the rules it would be chaos. Looking at wild magic with a strong background in traditional magic forms is like looking upon that chaos. But now suppose the player that is creating the chaos had his own set of rules he was abiding by, and it is only perceived to be chaos? Wild magic is like that. It has its own patterns- and anyone can learn to see the patterns and use them to create spells and enchantments similar to traditional magic. It's not easy or consistent. It doesn't mean there aren't rewards- there are." 

"Such as?" 

"Oh, some things that can not be done with traditional spells can be with wild magic and through song." 

"Like with the fire salamanders?" 

"Yes! The song I sang that day was not to calm the movements of the salamanders." 

"Right! It was a song to remind them of home- and they listened!" 

"Yes. That it had the side effect of calming them enough for the oil to be harvested was a not the intrinsic purpose of the song. That it happened to be a lullaby was inconsequential. Only a human being would understand it as such. In this case, we assigned a human style song to amplify the meaning for wild magic to work on a non-human. Needless to say this is not always- possible." 

"What do you mean?" 

"Would a lullaby calm a windstorm- or, what did Hagrid call them?" Sama paused, remembering the story Ron had told of a fearsome species Hagrid had kept as pets last year. "Blast-Ended Skrewts? No, you would need something much stronger than a lullaby." 

Ron's eyes gazed into nothingness before he turned back to her thoughtfully. "So finding the pattern will help unlock what type of binding you need in the spell!" 

"Yes! That's it exactly!" Sama felt a wave of satisfaction sweep through her. Ron could be very good at the older forms. He had learned so much in such a short period of time. Some students never got this far. It had been a very long time since she felt a student had grasped the intricacies of wild magic as well as this young wizard. She longed to have him as a student at the Academy. Remus had told her of the Weasley family, of Ron's older brothers, all of them brilliant wizards. She had even met the mischievous twins, and his younger sister, Ginny. She wondered if his parents would allow him to study a summer in the States. He could learn a lot… Perhaps, if she could set up an exchange program, she would find other students able to tap into the ancient powers. It was something to think about. After this business with Voldemort, and sealing the wild magic of the forest, perhaps she would speak with Headmaster Dumbledore. If they survived. 

~*~ 

Later that night in the Gryffindor common room Ron sat staring into space while Harry and Hermione studied. 

"Don't you think, Ron? Ron?" 

"What?" Ron focused back on the table. 

"Where are you tonight? That's the third time you've ignored us." Hermione was watching him closely. 

"I'm sorry. I was thinking about something Miss Sama told me tonight." 

"Well?" Hermione fixed her gaze on him and he sighed. 

"She was talking about wolfsong- she said she understood the language of wolves which I thought was odd. I snuck a glance at Professor Lupin because- well, you know why. And that's when I saw the way Professor Lupin looked at her. I think he fancies her." Ron said slowly. 

"What do you mean, fancies her?" 

"What do you think I mean? Come on Harry, you do know what 'fancies' means, right?" Ron sounded aggravated. 

"Of course I know what it means, you twit! I meant what makes you think he fancies her?" 

"The way he looked at her… Every once in a while when they think no one is around, my mum and dad look at each other like that. Kind of soft and… mushy." 

"Do you think Miss Sama feels the same way?" Hermione asked eagerly. 

"I don't know. Do you think she knows he's a werewolf?" 

"Ah… well… yeah. I'm pretty sure she knows." Harry suddenly wouldn't meet their eyes and he was blushing. 

Hermione and Ron watched the flush with fascination as it stained his cheeks. 

"What?" Harry was now squirming in his chair. 

"Harry, what have you been keeping from us?" 

"Well, ummm… The morning after the full moon, I went up to the owlery to send a message to Snuffles and I saw them coming across the grounds together. Professor Lupin was wearing her cloak- I am fairly certain he wasn't wearing anything under it- and she didn't look… she wasn't… properly dressed. They both looked kind of muddy… I thought maybe… well, maybe she's one too." His voice trailed off as Hermione and Ron stared at him. Harry suddenly found himself pelted with small items from the table as his best friends tossed whatever was handy at him. 

"Why didn't you tell us!" 

"Miss Sama, a werewolf! That's just- _perfect_- that is!" 

~*~ 

Sama sat in the library surrounded by stacks of dusty volumes detailing every known creature that existed in Britain. She was making notes on sheets of parchment, already filled with a variety of other notations, some made by Remus, and others by Hagrid. 

"Miss Sama?" 

"Yes?" Sama glanced up into Hermione's face peering at her from over one of the shorter stacks of books. 

"Can I… help you?" Hermione was looking slightly unsure of herself. 

"Certainly. If it won't interfere with your studies." 

"It won't!" Sama had the distinct impression that Hermione was one of those people who is happiest learning something than at any other time. Handing Hermione one of the sheets of parchment, and a stack of books, she explained the information she was looking for. 

They worked in companionable silence for a while. Hermione kept looking over at her. Sama became increasingly aware of the young woman's scrutiny. Finally placing her quill on the table, she leaned back in her chair. 

"Hermione, was there something else you wanted?" 

Hermione jumped. "Oh! I… just wanted to help… Ron's helping with the song, and Harry's working with Professor Lupin on the chants. I'm just really good at research." 

"Yes. I can see that. However, you've consulted that same paragraph four times. It doesn't seem like your mind is here." Sama was slightly amused that Hermione, who always seemed so self-possessed was now rattled and nervous. 

Hermione flushed. _How did they talk me into this?_ She thought irritably. The logic that Ron used on her was that this was 'girl stuff'. Finally she blurted, "Are you a werewolf?" Hermione blushed scarlet. "Oh! That didn't come out the way I wanted it…" 

Sama laughed. "Remus told me you were the one who figured out that he was a werewolf two years ago. You were sure about him, what makes you question my… werewolf status?" 

"You don't exhibit the same signs Professor Lupin did. But then, the moon has only been full once since you've been here…" Hermione bit her lip. "Harry seemed to think you were…" 

"Well, Harry is right. I am a werewolf. I am wolf-born, which is entirely different from wolf-bit." 

"Oh." Hermione considered. "Do… do you like Professor Lupin?" 

Sama raised an eyebrow at Hermione's question. "I consider Remus a good friend." She said carefully. 

Hermione was quiet a moment as she thought over the response. She watched as a slight pink tinged Sama's face. Satisfied that perhaps there was more than friendship there after all, she made a show of turning back to her parchment and continuing her research. 

Sama was startled to find herself blushing under Hermione's close scrutiny, and was relieved when Hermione didn't follow up her questioning. Slightly disturbed at her own reaction, Sama turned her attention back to the volume she had been consulting. 

~*~ 

It was six nights until the full moon, one week until Halloween night, when Remus and Sama were at Hagrid's for tea and strategy. At the scratching at the door, Fang looked up from his place by the hearth, and growled slightly. Remus opened the door, and with a cry of joy he stepped aside to admit an enormous black dog. 

The dog's form blurred until a tall black haired man stood in its place. Remus and the man embraced, thumping each other on the back, and Hagrid rose to greet the newcomer also. Dumbledore had long since taken Hagrid in to the circle of those that knew of the Animagus' innocence, although there was still no proof. Sama rose also and watched as the stranger was ushered to a seat by the fire. 

"Sama, this is Sirius Black." Remus' eyes glowed with pleasure as he introduced his childhood friend. 

Sirius' eyes twinkled with good humor as he made a slight bow over her hand. "Isamatia Canid. I had the very great pleasure of taking tea with your aunt a couple of months ago." 

"So Headmaster Dumbledore told me, Mr. Black." 

As if the mention of the headmaster reminded him why he'd come, Sirius' face lost its smile and he suddenly looked tired. Sinking into the chair they'd pulled out for him he turned to Remus. 

"Moony, what progress has been made with sealing the forest against Voldemort?" 

"We've got the spells, and are modifying them now. Sealing something as blasted big as the Forest is complicated." 

"When will you be ready?" 

"We are planning for Halloween. The wild magics won't bind well until then." Sama said. 

Sirius swore softly under his breath. "My information tells me that Halloween is the night Voldemort will attempt his own spells." 

"We cannot do it any earlier. The bindings won't take, and the seals will be easily broken. We'll just have to take our chances." she shrugged, a cold feeling growing the pit of her stomach. 

They talked for a while and decided that Sirius would stay with Hagrid. As another of Hagrid's creatures he wouldn't attract too much attention from those who did not know who and what he was. Remus was delighted when he joined their strategy sessions with all his old cleverness, intelligence, and sense of fun. Harry, Ron and Hermione used any excuse to have tea with Hagrid and Sirius. Sama quickly came to appreciate his quick wit and clear thinking. 

~*~ 

Remus and Sirius sat outside Hagrid's hut watching the waxing moon crawl across the sky. It was very late, the night after Sirius had arrived. Sama had retired early, and Hagrid snored inside. Silence stretched between the two friends, but not an uncomfortable one. 

"Did you know she's a werewolf?" Remus' voice was low. 

Sirius looked over at Remus, startled. His face was lowered, and he was staring into his cup. A slow smile started to spread across Sirius' face. 

"Yeah. I suspected." 

Remus glanced up, surprised. "You did?" 

"Yeah." Sirius was quiet a minute, before he went on. "Dumbledore gave me a pendant on a chain- some kind of finding mechanism- to help guide me to where wild magic was being used. I found the shields at Wolfgate Farm quite by accident, two nights before the full moon. Getting into Wolf Hollow took a day and a half. They've got that place hidden really well. Three times I found myself wandering through woods far from the shielded valley with no inkling of how I'd gotten there. It was maddening- Not only is the valley unplottable, it has strong befuddlement spells in effect. To keep people out, I suppose. When I finally did get in it was the afternoon before the full moon. I had tea with her aunt. What a character! Anyway, around dusk she threw me out. I stuck around- as Padfoot- and noticed that most of the houses in the Hollow were dark- and no one seemed to be about. What had been a bustling village was now deserted. When I heard the howling in the woods- well, I kind of figured out why the shields were so strong. I even probed them- but I couldn't 'see' through them. I-" Sirius paused and a sheepish smile crossed his face briefly. "I broke into her aunt's home to use the fireplace and spoke with Dumbledore that night…" 

"You what?" Remus had been staring at him like he'd sprouted another head. 

"Oh, it's all right." Sirius waved his hand dismissively. "Iris told me I would. I just didn't know she was a foreteller at the time. When I was leaving that afternoon she said to me 'Sonny-boy, you come back here. You use my fireplace. It's OK.' I thought she was totally around the bend at that. Now I know she's a future reader." Sirius shrugged a bit. "Moony, there must be a hundred werewolves living there. The wolfsong echoing through that valley that night… It's a thriving community. I told Dumbledore that you should be the one to go." 

"Did you tell him why?" 

"I didn't have time. He wanted to contact Fudge right away. I imagine the American Ministry may have…" 

"Probably. It seemed to come as no surprise to him last full moon…" 

Sirius eyed Remus speculatively, pondering the last remark. He wondered what had happened at the full moon, but knew he would find out more if he let Remus talk to him in his own time. Then again, he mused, Remus' face really said it all. 

~*~ 

The days flew by in a blur of spell working and reworking until it was the day of the full moon. The last preparations for Halloween had been made, and Remus had been sure to take the Wolfsbane Potion faithfully. In the early evening, Sama and Remus went together to the Forbidden Forest. Sirius had mentioned that he would be spending the evening with Harry at Hagrid's, but might be able to sneak out late. Remus had answered him absently, and so didn't notice the slow, pleased smile spread over his friend's face. 

Sama and Remus walked steadily together into the Forbidden Forest, and when they reached the small clearing where they had ended the last full moon night, they stopped. Suddenly shy, Sama sat with arms wrapped around her knees in a root hollow at the base of a tree, and awaited dusk and the rising of the moon. Remus sat beside her, nervous and afraid. He'd never willingly changed in front of someone else before. He'd always been already in wolfskin by the time Padfoot, Prongs, and Wormtail came to liberate him from the prison of the Shrieking Shack. 

The forest darkened around them as the sun set. Sama could feel the tides of her body shift, gaining strength as the moon started her upward climb. Bristly hair started to sprout, and move across her body in waves. Standing, she shed her cloak and robe. Beside her, Remus shrugged out of his own robes as the change gripped him. Long, painful minutes later, the wolves greeted each other with happy whines and yips. Slowly, for tonight they knew there would be no headlong chase, they moved toward the beckoning depths of the wood. They both knew they had to conserve their energy. The pale grey wolf and large brown wolf melted into the Forest together. 

Morning found them curled together at the base of the tree, and they rose tiredly. After dressing, they picked bits of leaves and twigs from each other's hair. Together they went up to the castle, and only after breakfast, and Sama's 'health tonic', did they part, to rest as much as possible before the spell workings that evening. 

~*~ 

In the late afternoon Sama went to Hagrid's hut and found Dumbledore, Remus, and Sirius with him. Sirius was arguing with Dumbledore about being allowed to go with them into the Forbidden Forest. 

"I should be there! If Voldemort gets through the spellworkings …" 

"If Voldemort does get through you'll be needed at the castle, Padfoot." Remus said quietly. "You are very powerful, my friend. If we fail… If we do not surv…" Remus paused, and swallowed. "They will need your help. _Harry_ will need you there." 

Sama watched the two men, and thought that Sirius was going to object. Then he backed down. Groaning, he slammed his fist on the table in defeat. "Moony, I don't want to not be there if… Not again…" 

Remus' eyes glowed with understanding. "I know. I wasn't there the night James and Lily died, either. But we know the risks." Remus stood beside his tall friend and suddenly clapped a hand on his shoulder. "Besides, we're just going for a walk in the woods." 

Sirius looked into Remus' eyes, and suddenly the ghost of a smile flitted across his face. Reaching out he clasped his friend's shoulder. "Be careful, Moony." Transforming, the big black dog padded up to Hogwarts beside Dumbledore. Remus watched after them. Once they were gone, he turned back and helped Sama and Hagrid pack up the items they would need. 

They started to set the bindings in the forest as the sun faded over the horizon, and as the moon rose. Quietly at first, so as to not disturb the bonds between forest and inhabitants, Sama played her pipes as Remus and Hagrid chanted the spells they had worked out so carefully over the last two months. Hagrid's voice naturally provided the beat, which he punctuated by slapping his hand on a small drum. Remus' higher tone wove around the drumbeats, providing support to Sama's piping. Sama felt the gathering power flow through the soles of her bare feet from the forest floor up through her body. She concentrated on focusing the power that was emanating out from the two wizards. Together the three of them found their melody and their rhythm and the power built and built, sealing each edge of the forest with intent and need. Louder and louder they sent their enchantments out into every corner of the forest. Slowly, the forest responded, and the glen started to glow brighter and brighter around them. Like a light fog, the glow spread outward from the focus, settling throughout the wood. Sifting upward, it started to outline each bit it touched, and as it did it grew and grew. The sound of the spellworking sang in the very wood of the trees- sealing them from the inside out. At the brightest heart of the glow, the wizards and the witch reached the climax of the sealing. 

At the height of the enchantment, there was a resounding clash of spell hitting spell. They recoiled as the counterpoint tuning smashed into them like a wave upon rocks. It reverberated and retreated through the wood and their melody faltered. Sama's pipes cracked with the force of the attacking spell. A cold wind whipped through the forest. Voldemort and his supporters were trying to strip the wild magic from the forest even as Sama, Remus and Hagrid struggled to bind it. There was a great racket as the inhabitants of the forest rose up against Voldemort's spell workings. The creatures, magical and non-magical alike, screamed in defiance at the raw power threatening their homes. As the woods about them started to glow a sickly blackish green, there was a great splintering sound; Hagrid and Remus looked at Sama, panic showing plainly in their eyes. Sama's pipes fell apart in her hands with the force of the counter spell. Throwing down the now-useless bits of wood and reed, Sama continued the wild magic weaving with song. The air around her crackled with energy. Her song was a countermelody that wove itself into the spell chanting that Hagrid and Remus continued. As the power built in a second, more powerful wave, Sama felt the pressure well within her, searching for a release she couldn't give it. She could feel it want to force itself from behind her eyes. Suddenly, saturated tissues burst as blood started to run from her nose. Remus also had blood running from his nose, and she supposed Hagrid did too, but she couldn't turn her head and look at him. The magically conjured wind whined and whipped around them picking up bits of debris, and battering them. Sama shut her eyes to keep the grit out and continued the song, struggling for dominance. 

The power crackled throughout the glen and the black green glow slowly lightened to a blue purple fog that changed the bindings wherever it settled, laying down the enchantment and sealing it against the dark magic that threatened to worm its way into the forest. As the final note sounded out through the forest, all three of them sagged to the ground and sat panting. 

"Ohhhhh… me head hurts." Hagrid's voice was gravelly with strain. The backlash was rolling over them, and the big man whimpered a bit with its force. 

The earth shook and rumbled. All of a sudden there was a resounding CRACK as some of their spell bindings burst. Remus looked at Sama, she blanched, blood now pouring in a deep red river from her nose. The backlash of the spell workings was hitting her the hardest, but she looked up at him with near panic in her eyes. 

"Remus! The lake! He broke the bindings at the lake! He's trying to strip power from the water magic!" 

End Part Four 

_ Author's Notes: Many thanks to Gwen for editing, encouragement, and inspiration. Thank you to all those who have been reading this story and giving feedback all along. If you have been reading along (and I know there are far more of you than those few who have been kind enough to review) thanks for reading. Maybe we can invite you to review as well? Part Five will end this story. Stay tuned!_

_ Disclaimers: Sama, Wolf Hollow, and the Academy for the Magical Arts and Sciences with all inhabitants mentioned and implied are mine. The universe they help populate in this incarnation, and all other characters belong to J.K. Rowling. No copyright infringement is intended. No money will be made from this fiction. _


	5. Part Five- Aftermath

## Full Moon Rising, Part Five

Scrambling to their feet they ran through the forest heedless of anything save the water bindings. A thunderstorm blew up out of the clear sky and the wind whipped at them with furious force. When they reached the lake the water was roiling with the sheer magnitude of the power Voldemort was trying to strip from it. Plunging in to the water hip deep Sama and Remus gripped each other's hands, wands raised. Hagrid stayed on the bank with his drum and started to beat it loudly. The binding song welled up and Sama sang with all the force she could muster. Remus began chanting the spells they had worked out for the Forest hoping that this was one of the times in wild magic where the actual words used didn't make a difference in the outcome of the enchantment. 

It was raining now, and the drops sizzled as Voldemort tried to strip them of power with Dark Magic. Sama, Hagrid, and Remus were pummeled with debris and battered by wind and wave both. New welts and cuts bloomed on their bodies as they stood defiant trying to force the binding back together. Rainwater and blood plastered Sama's hair to her face and she shook her head impatiently to get it out of her eyes. Forcing the storm back as best they could, she and Remus brought their wands together and focused the spell. They started weaving a net of light that expanded, with them at the center as the maelstrom raged around them. Hogwarts was illuminated behind them as lightning cut the sky and the spells protecting it flared brightly. They were pouring more and more power into the spell weaving, but even so Sama could feel them losing ground to Voldemort and his supporters. Desperately tapping into her own life force, she started using it to counter the spells stripping the power from the very water they were standing in. She felt her strength wane as her wand dipped closer to the water. Next to her, Remus was trying to share his strength with her, but she felt his power draining away also. 

~*~ 

Up in the Gryffindor common room Ron was pacing. Hermione glanced between Ron's frantic energy and Harry's pale face. Padfoot lay at Harry's feet. When the castle shook again, Ron stopped his pacing. Slamming his fist on the table he suddenly shouted. "We've got to DO something!" 

Harry looked up, startled. "What exactly did you have in mind?" He said mildly. 

"Are you both out of yours?" Hermione broke in. "Miss Sama and Professor Lupin know what they're doing. This is WILD MAGIC! It's dangerous." 

"Your point?" Ron stared fixedly at her. 

"I just thought someone ought to point out we don't know enough about the spells they're doing." Hermione said petulantly. 

"Hermione, my scar has been hurting since the storm started." Harry paused as she gaped at him. They all knew what that meant- Voldemort was doing something particularly nasty. Gently, he continued. "_I_ think they're in trouble. They _need_ us. If Ron has an idea, I for one, want to hear it." 

"You've done enough research about the magic they're using, Hermione, you could help. And Harry- you studied some of the spells with Professor Lupin." Ron thought a second and then almost leapt across the table. Falling to his knees in front of Padfoot he whispered to the dog. "Snuffles, I know the tuning- I helped pattern the song magic. You've been part of the strategy planning. Do you think you can help us help them?" Padfoot's eyes flashed and the dog growled quietly. "That's a yes. Come on!" Ron quickly went toward the portrait hole. 

"Ron! Wait! We're coming, too." Harry ran up to their room and returned almost immediately with the invisibility cloak. It wouldn't be a good idea to be seen going out of the castle with a Dark Arts thunderstorm raging around them. 

The castle shook again as they climbed up to the top of one of the turrets. Exiting out onto the roof, Sirius transformed. The four of them were soaked almost immediately in the torrential downpour. Ron was already at the wall peering out into the storm. "Look!" 

They followed his pointing finger and saw that the lake was glowing a sickly grayish green. In the center of the lake there was a horrifying funnel of water reaching into the sky. The storm clouds had a distinctly greenish tint to them. At the base of the funnel they could barely see a patch of blue-purple light, and at the center there were two small figures. 

"Moony!" Sirius called out involuntarily. The four of them could see that the blue-purple glow that was the center of power for their friends was losing ground to the malevolent green. "Right! I've got the chant, Ron you start with the song. We're going to lend them some power. Remember, aim your will toward Sama and Remus." 

Swallowing convulsively, Ron lifted his wand and started the song he had practiced with Sama. Hermione slipped her hand into his empty one and he felt Harry gripping his shoulder. Sirius started the chanting with Harry and Hermione following him. Ron could feel the rush of wild magic welling up inside him. His own power was joined by Harry's, Hermione's, and Sirius'. Their power built together and Ron aimed his wand towards the figures below. Concentrating hard, Ron let the song be amplified through his wand until their combined power whistled through him. He could feel it streaming outward, and his consciousness followed it to the fading presence of the figures far below them. 

~*~ 

Suddenly Sama gasped as the air around her sparkled blue and a gust of pure power swept around them. Amazed, she realized that Ron was casting the spells from up on the castle roof. Ron was lending his power to her! And it wasn't only Ron- she felt Sirius, Harry and Hermione there, too. As their power merged with her spells, Sama felt rejuvenated. 

Quickly using themselves as the focus for the power, Sama and Remus became the lens and broadcast the power out into the storm. Their glow strengthened in intensity, and beat back against the green. With a strange sucking sound, Voldemort's power finally broke. As his spells flew apart, the full force of the wild magic backlash he had held off for months came crashing down on him and his supporters, the water funnel fell back and the storm lessened. 

Even before the storm cleared, Albus Dumbledore was at the head of the group that exited the castle to see what happened. They found Hagrid first, unconscious next to the smashed drum. Sama and Remus lay half in the water on the bank of the lake. On first glance they looked dead. Closer inspection found them battered and bloody, hands still gripped tightly together, unconscious. 

"Lumos!" 

"Their hands won't come apart." 

"I've got their wands- we'd better take them up together." 

"Move away, I've got to…" 

"Lets get Hagrid up to the castle. Professor Dumbledore will look after…" 

"Sama hang on, we've got you." 

~*~ 

On the roof of the turret Sirius was the first to recover. As he was sitting up, Harry opened his eyes and groaned. Hermione stirred, but Ron lay silently, crumpled at the base of the wall. Crawling over to him Sirius turned him over, and paled at the sight of Ron's lifeless face. Blood ran freely from his nose, and his freckles stood out starkly against his paper white skin. There were harsh purple hollows under his eyes, and Sirius had to watch carefully to make sure he was breathing. 

"Harry, where's the cloak? We've got to get him back to your room." 

"Is he OK?" Worry etched his face. 

"Unconscious. But he'd do better in a warm, dry place." 

Lifting him gently, Sirius stood and allowed Harry to throw the cloak over him. He let Harry and Hermione lead the way back to the Gryffindor common room entrance. On their way through the hallways they noticed a commotion outside of the hospital ward as Hagrid's unconscious form was being transported for examination. Loyalties warred within him, but finally, at their urging, Sirius left Harry and Hermione to put Ron to bed. Becoming Padfoot, he set off to sneak into the hospital to find out what happened to his friends. 

~*~ 

The hospital ward was full of people. Padfoot slunk to Dumbledore's side. Padfoot looked up into the concerned face of the headmaster, and whined. Dumbledore murmured softly to the dog, and with a few words to Madam Pomfrey, Padfoot was allowed to stay, although everyone else was summarily dismissed. 

"Out! This is a hospital, not a circus! Out!" 

"…agree it looks bad, Professor… just don't know what's…" 

Voices faded until only, faintly, "Come on Moony- Don't leave me now!" 

~*~ 

Harry and Hermione carried Ron into the Gryffindor common room and set him gently on one of the couches. They did not notice Ginny Weasley watching them, and turning white-faced, she raced up the stairs to the dorms. 

"He's cold, Harry, we need to dry him off." Hermione took out her wand. 

"No- Don't!" Harry stopped her. She looked at him with puzzlement. "Hermione, we're too tired. We'll just have to dry him off and warm him up without magic. We're not up to it." 

Hermione rubbed her temple and nodded. They were startled when noisy footsteps clattered behind them. 

"Ginny, I am sure he's fine…" Fred's voice trailed off as he saw the bedraggled state of Harry and Hermione. His face paled and he visibly swallowed when he saw Ron lying unresponsive. George pulled up short right behind his brother, and Ginny's face, pale and tear-streaked peeked out from behind them. 

George found his voice first. Without rancor he said, "What did you do, Harry?" 

"Me? It was all Ron's idea." Harry looked so miserable Ron's brothers came over and knelt next to him. Ginny sniffled as she sidled up to Hermione. Hermione reached out put a comforting arm around the smaller girl. 

"It's OK, Ginny. Ron's going to be fine. We just have to get him dry and up to bed." Hermione's reassurances sounded a little hollow. The four of them stared down at Ron's abnormally still form in a daze for a moment. Ginny could feel the older girl shaking with exhaustion. Harry didn't look much better. 

"Right. Fred, you grab his shoulders. George, you get his feet. We're taking him to Madam Pomfrey." Ginny was as surprised as her brothers when she heard the commands issuing out of her mouth. "Hermione, you and Harry are going nowhere but bed." When it looked like they would object she continued in a slightly fiercer tone. "Go. We'll take care of Ron." 

~*~ 

Ron woke, disoriented. He recognized the hospital ward, but he didn't know why he was there. His brain seemed pleasantly fuzzed over. He felt paralyzed. Wondering if he had been hexed with the _petrificus totalus_, he kicked out in a numbed sort of panic. This drew the attention of the person he could sense sitting next to him, but he couldn't summon the energy to turn his head. 

"Ron! You're awake!" His sister's worried face floated into his field of vision. 

"Wha-" 

"No. Don't talk. You shouldn't move either. Madam Pomfrey! He's awake!" 

Madam Pomfrey came and clucked over him. Raising the head of his bed slightly, she let him sip some water. "You gave us a scare, young man. Attempting wild magic! None of you have any sense what-so-ever." She continued to berate him quietly for a few minutes and then she bustled away. 

Ginny came back into view, this time Fred was right behind her. "We thought you'd never wake up, Ron." 

Ron was surprised to see his brother's face, normally full of mischief, looking very grave. "I don't understand." Ron whispered faintly. "What happened?" 

"You nearly died!" Ginny's voice was high and squeaky. "Don't you ever-" She broke off suddenly with a sob and ran from the room. Fred looked after her with a slightly bewildered expression on his face. 

"She was acting just like mum, all iron-willed and businesslike until you woke up and then…" Shaking his head slightly he began to quietly fill Ron in on the events of the past couple of days. 

~*~ 

Time stretched and contracted on itself like pulled taffy. Consciousness came in fits and starts. Pain first, and then awareness, and then rejection of light and sound for the blessed sleep of oblivion. For six days Sama and Remus lay unresponsive in the hospital wing, Madam Pomfrey hovering over them, watching for any change. Sama dreamt she could hear people around her, and whimpering with agony, she tried to shut them out. She felt like she was trapped, wrapped in cotton. Sound was the enemy. It echoed around her in white-hot daggers. The voices wouldn't let her alone, and faded in and out. She couldn't tell if what she heard was real, or imagined. She had no way of knowing if the words were one conversation, or many. 

"Hagrid is awake finally… backlash didn't hurt him as much… rest is the best medicine for him now, but these two… I honestly don't know." 

"It's been days. Will they wake?" 

"It's too… to tell." 

"We've been getting owls from Wolf Hollow almost hourly. Apparently, when she used her life force, they felt it through the spells at the farm… Something to do with a blood oath she took…" 

"Life force!… could have died…" 

"I am not certain what to tell them… want to send someone from Wolf Hollow here… tried to dissuade them… If young Weasley hadn't done that spell work we all may… died that night… too close…" 

"…he won't try that again any time soon…" 

"…Powerful and…" 

"What will happen to them?" 

"They'll either wake on their own… continue like this." 

"With injuries such as these… Backlash caught them hard… They were the focus…" 

"Did you feel You-know-who's power break? It was the most horrible…" 

"Yes. Whoever was assisting Voldemort likely didn't survive. We may never know who…" 

"This is wild magic- nothing I can deal with in conventional ways…" 

"…plants from Professor Sprout, as requested…" 

"…put them over here… Never had my infirmary turned into a greenhouse, but maybe with wild magics… good suggestion from Ron Weasley…" 

"Physically, they're healing… well as we can expect… If this were anything but wild magic they should be awake." 

"Remus, wake up. Wake up Remus, come on Moony, please…" This last voice she thought belonged to Sirius, before everything went silent again. 

On the seventh day, Sama woke with the sun streaming in the window. Opening her eyes, she immediately screwed them tightly shut again and tried to cover them with her hand. She found she couldn't even lift her arms. She was incredibly weak. When she whimpered, Madam Pomfrey bustled over to her bed and raised the head a bit, clucking to forestall any questions. 

"Professor Dumbledore will be pleased to know you are awake." 

"Remus?" Sama managed to croak, her throat felt like sandpaper. 

"There, beside you. Don't move. No, he hasn't woken yet, but I expect he will any time now." 

With the admonishment ringing in her still tender ears, she turned to find Remus lying pale and still in the next bed. Padfoot lay on Remus' bed curled next to him, asleep. She watched closely to make sure Remus was breathing before lying back on her pillow. She smiled grimly at the profusion of plants that had been carted into the hospital ward. Professor Sprout must have gutted her greenhouse to help them heal. 

Remus woke up later that afternoon and with a groan of pain he turned to find her watching him, and smiling gently, he promptly went back to sleep. 

Late that night, when the castle was quiet, Sirius, Sama, and Remus talked over Halloween night. Sama was thankful to hear that after Ron had lain unresponsive for a full two days, he awoke recovered from his part in the song magic. 

~*~ 

The next few weeks went by in a blur of periods of sleep broken with periods of lucidity. Once he'd made sure Remus would fully recover, Sirius went off on some business for the Order. Staying in one place, even if the number of people who knew of his innocence was growing, was dangerous for him. 

Sama managed to reassure the pack back in Wolf Hollow that she was fine, and not to come en masse. She felt very sure one hundred and sixteen werewolves descending on Hogwarts would not be looked on too kindly by the British Ministry. Eight exhausted owls later, they agreed to let her recuperate in peace. 

Hagrid visited often, usually bringing one of his creature friends with him. Harry, Ron, and Hermione visited when their studies and Madam Pomfrey would permit. For entertainment, Ron even treated them to a play-by-play description of the first Quidditch match of the season, much to Harry's embarrassment (Gryffindor won). Dumbledore, who insisted that Sama call him Albus, was a frequent visitor in the hospital ward. After hearing the full account from both Sama and Remus, he continued to visit for tea. Sama spoke to him about wanting to set up a student exchange between the Academy and Hogwarts. He heartily approved of the idea, and went further, saying a student exchange program was all well and good, but a Professor exchange program- what an excellent idea! Remus' convalescence was slower than her own, and he was still in bed when she took her first halting steps outside the hospital ward. 

The moon waxed, and the full moon came again. Remus and Sama spent their first change since Halloween curled together, weak as new pups, in a shadowy corner of the hospital ward. On Albus' suggestion, Poppy Pomfrey left the ward locked and unattended that night. 

~*~ 

Sama stood in the room she had been assigned to three months ago, packing her things. As happy as she was to be going home, she was sad, too. She had missed three runnings with the pack, but she had grown fond of the Forbidden Forest, the students and teachers at Hogwarts, and Remus. Especially Remus. Packing was exhausting and her newly strengthened body ached. She was not looking forward to the airplane trip home. Muggle transportation was not comfortable at the best of times and she knew it would be agony today. 

There was a knock on her door, and when she opened it she found a number of students waiting to say goodbye to her. It proved to be only the first group of many as they trickled in to wish her farewell. Harry, Ron, and Hermione, were among the last to come. 

"I made these for you," Sama handed Ron a stack of parchment. "So you can keep up your studies." 

"Thank you." Ron's eyes rested miserably on the papers she handed him. 

Impulsively she said, "What would you think about coming to Wolf Hollow to study this summer?" In the shocked silence she included Harry and Hermione in her invitation. "All three of you. Don't give me your answer now. Think it over. Talk to your parents." 

Ron looked up, dazed. "Study in America for the summer?" his voice broke and squeaked at the last. 

"It won't be easy. When I say study, I mean study. You nearly burned yourself out with what you did on Halloween. I can teach you some things that will help you to call on the wild and song magic - without doing bodily harm to yourself." 

"I'll think about it." Harry and Hermione nodded in agreement. Sama knew Harry and Hermione would always be rooted firmly in the traditional magic forms, but they had also shown promise in the spellcasting they did on Halloween. Maybe, with a summer of intensive training, they would be able to call on the older forms as well. Perhaps not with the depth or finesse Ron was capable of, but well enough. They left talking about the possibilities. 

As they were leaving she looked up and found Remus standing in her doorway. Sama noticed the backward glances the trio gave her and Remus, and Hermione gently closed the door behind them. Remus was pale and drawn, but he had been pronounced fully healed. He reached out and gently grasped both her hands in his. 

Sama's head was bent, her gaze resting on their linked hands. "I have to go." 

"I know." 

"I have responsibilities- to the pack. To the Academy." 

"I know." 

"You are always welcome in Wolf Hollow." 

"Thank you." He watched, fascinated, as she nibbled her lower lip. 

"Wolfgate Farm is a sanctuary for- all of us. You've been a lone wolf too long. You should-" 

"No." She nodded, but didn't look up. Gently Remus continued. "I have responsibilities, too. Voldemort is not gone completely- only for now. It seems he always comes back." 

"I… understand. Headmaster- Albus has asked me to gather those I know together in an- Order of the Phoenix West, if you will. As a safety measure." 

"That's good." 

Sama drew herself up to look Remus straight in the eye. "You will be in my heart, Remus." 

"You will never leave mine." 

"I … Good running, Remus." She embraced him and heard his whispered reply. 

"Good running, Sama." 

Picking up her small case, she walked alone down the stairs, feeling his eyes on her until she stepped out into the sunny December morning. Remus looked down at the items she had slipped into his hand when she released him. A bit of parchment and a small, faintly glowing stone on a chain. The letter said simply "This Pathfinder Stone will lead you home, whenever you wish. S." Touched, Remus slipped the chain over his head. It was warm against his skin, and he knew if he ever wanted- or needed- to find her, the stone would guide him to her side. 

Sama's eyes managed to be dry when she exited the school, but it was close. There was a carriage waiting to take her to Hogsmeade station and from there she would go to London and retraced her steps all the way home to Wolf Hollow. Both Dumbledore and Hagrid were there to see her off. Hagrid's nose was suspiciously red, but his eyes were dry. 

"G'bye, Miss." 

"Goodbye, Hagrid. I will miss you. Take care of all your charges." The big man cleared his throat noisily and then quickly turned and walked briskly away. 

"Headmas… Albus. Thank you. I will speak with Principal Marshal about the summer exchange program we discussed. I think our students would benefit from spending some time with traditional magic older than a couple of hundred years. And young Ron Weasley is very talented with wild magic. He could benefit from some refinement of his obvious gift." 

"I will keep that in mind. It would benefit Hogwarts students as a whole to study with you and your colleagues. We must strengthen our ties throughout the whole wizarding community to be able to face and turn the rise of the Dark Arts." 

Impulsively, Sama reached out and hugged the headmaster. Surprised, but pleased, Dumbledore chuckled a bit as he hugged her back. Climbing into the carriage, she took one last look up at the school. She saw a shadowed form behind a window, high up in one of the turrets. Uncertain, she gave half a wave before settling back into the seat. Sama was going home. 

The End 

_ Author's Notes: There are some things I want to say, and this is the perfect place to say them. So if you are one of those people who is not interested, please feel free to stop reading this right now. I put this at the end specifically so you wouldn't have to scroll through stuff at the top when you'd rather get right to the story. Anyway *clears throat and steps up on soapbox* This fiction came out of the idea that there are wolf-born. As with most good stories, it all started with "What if…" What if werewolves bore children? Would those children also be werewolves? What if they are? What differences would that make to the change? Sama, Wolf Hollow, and Wolfgate Farm were the natural progression from this supposition. A community based around a minority- it happens all the time, everywhere. The second "What if…" was mostly a "Why isn't there…" Why isn't there much mention of the Arts in the Rowling Universe? No song, no dance, no performance, no art. But suppose there are magics that use all of these? Ritual magics, song magics, water magics, wild magics. Now the last, and most important part of the story- how to bring the sketched out bits of supposition into the Rowling Universe with a purpose… We know Voldemort is the ever-returning evil force. Suppose for a moment that he gathered power from the most unlikely of places- wild and song magic. Since Hogwarts doesn't seem to have an expert in this type of magic, POOF! I dropped the whole of my supposed wild-magic world- lock, stock, and barrel- neatly into place. Remus was a likely candidate to play guide. That he struck up an affection for Sama (and she for him) was NOT intended. I whole-heartedly agree with the reviewer who said Sama is not the girlfriend she would have chosen for Remus. She's not the girl I would have given him either! I did not set out to write a "Remus gets a girlfriend" fic. But, well… boat go where boat go (OK- unless you've read "Honk and Holler Opening Soon" that doesn't make much sense- basically it means you can't expect to have control- you just have to accept stuff as it comes along.). I want to be very clear about something, there will be no happily-ever-afters for the two of them. No riding off into the sunset together. No getting married and having lots of little werewolf puppies. They both have responsibilities. This is a war after all. But **don't** be surprised if Remus ends up in Wolf Hollow some odd evening while the full moon shines down into the valley…As to "to sequel or not to sequel, that is the question. Whether tis nobler in the mind to suffer..." *ahem* So sorry. I got a bit carried away there for a second. No promises. 'kay?_

_ Again, To Ryan, Gwen and especially my CL, Thank you thank you thank you. If Gregor had made an appearance, I would have thanked him, too. For your edits, thoughts, encouragement, and love, I thank you. Now about "His Majesty's Secret Service"-If you are not reading it, go now to do so. Gwendolyn Grace is taking us on a wild ride. And since I know a bit more about where it's going than others, let me assure you it is gonna be GOOD!_

_ Disclaimers: Sama, Wolf Hollow, and the Academy for the Magical Arts and Sciences with all inhabitants mentioned and implied are mine. The universe they help populate in this incarnation, and all other characters belong to J.K. Rowling. No copyright infringement is intended. No money will be made from this fiction. _


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